t<    l^A** 


(  /y 


ADDRESS 


PELIVERED  BEFORE 


THE 


> 


OCTOBER  13, 1824 ; 


DEINC  THEIR 


a.\iv\\\evsavy  Cattle  S\\ow  awd  ExWibitlou 
o£  Ma\\\\?aetv\re^. 


BY  ISAAC  GOODWIN,  ESQ. 


Published  by  order  of  the  Truetce?. 


nlI^'TED  B¥  WILLIAM  MASNIiVG. 


ADDRESS 


PELIVERED  BEFORE 


THE 


y 


T^BwtmXtx  afltlcuUuvi^l  Society, 

OCTO  JB£i2  13,  1824; 


££INC  THEIB. 


a.\im\evsavy  Cattle  S\\ow  awd  ExWiUtiou 
o?  Ma\\A\?actv\refe. 


BY  ISAAC  GOODWIN,  ESQ. 


Published  by  order  of  the  Trustees. 


KlIKTED  BY  WILLIAM  MA5NIIVG. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  MASSACHUSETTS 
AT  AMHERST 


UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

Special  Collections  &  Rare  Books 


ADDRESS. 


THE  cultivation  of  the  earth  is  the  employment  des- 
tined to  man  by  his  Creator.  It  is  the  occupation  of  all 
others  best  fitted  to  promote  his  heallh,  by  alternate  rest 
and  labour  ;  to  preserve  his  virtue,  by  withdrawing  him 
from  the  contagion  of  the  more  busy  world  :  and  to  ad- 
vance his  civilization,  by  calling  him  away  from  the  scenes 
of  violence  incident  to  a  roaming  life,  to  the  cultivation 
of  the  soft  arts  of  peace.  Hence  it  has  been  cherished 
by  the  most  enlightened  of  all  nations.  It  has  been  the 
source  of  sustenance  alike  to  the  palace  and  the  cot- 
tage, to  the  king  and  the  beggar.  In  reviewing  the  his- 
tory of  mankind,  we  find  their  advancement  and  decline 
in  public  virtue  have  kept  concurrent  progress  with  this 
art.  From  Babylon^  from  Greece  and  from  Judea,  Agri- 
culture was  transferred  with  every  thing  that  served  to 
embellish  life,  to  Rome,  v/hcre  it  was  the  theme  of  her 
statesmen  and  her  poets.  With  the  decline  Siudfall  of 
civilization  in  that  vast  empire,  the  vineyards  and  the 
gardens  that  overspread  her  almost  illimitable  domains 
were  converted  either  into  wastes  for  wild  beasts,  or  into 
fields  of  slaughter  and  of  war.  The  burdens  and  exac- 
tions of  the  lords  of  the  soil  upon  the  products  of  the  ten- 
ants, were  the  great  evils  of  the  feudal  system.  Industry 
consequently  was  discouraged  and  extinguished.  Agri- 
culture and  the  arts  expired  ;  and  the  melancholy  train 
was  followed  by  the  downfal  of  learning  and  civilization. 
For  centaries.  the  fields  and  the  workshops  of  Europe 


yielded  scarcely  a  product  but  "  man  and  steel,  the  sol- 
dier and  his  sword."  That  long  and  dreary  night  had 
passed  away,  and,  with  the  returning  dawn  of  civilization 
and  letters,  the  earth  was  made  to  yield  her  increase. — 
And  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  of  Europe,  and  the  proper 
mode  of  encouraging  her  manufnctures,  have  for  a  long 
time  been  the  favourite  topics  that  have  employed  her 
statesmen  and  wisest  scholars.  Both  the  theory  and 
practice  of  tilling  her  soil,  now  employs  the  ablest  of  her 
hands,  the  wisest  of  her  heads,  and  the  purest  of  her 
hearts.  All  the  knowledge  that  can  be  derived  from 
Chemistry  and  from  Natural  Philosophy  is  there  daily 
shedding  new  light  upon  this  science.  And  in  the  pres- 
ent period  of  peace,  the  comparatively  small  demand  she 
has  for  our  products  is  the  best  evidence  that  the  agricul- 
tural exertions  of  Europe  are  not  made  in  vain.  Every 
part  of  that  interesting  continent  (if  we  except  the  penin- 
sula) is  nov/  probably  making  greater  advances  in  every 
branch  of  local  improvement  than  at  any  former  period. 

Do  we  not  also  see  the  beneficial  results  of  domestic 
industry  in  every  part  of  our  own  beloved  nation  ?  We 
witness  it  in  the  unexampled  improvement  of  our  public 
canals,  bridges  and  ways  ;  in  the  facilities  for  transporta- 
tion to  the  most  remote  parts  of  the  land  ;  in  the  superior 
taste  displayed  in  our  public  edifices  and  domestic  dwell- 
ings ;  in  the  erection  of  spacious  and  permanent  manufac- 
tories in  every  branch  of  the  arts  ;  in  the  general  appear- 
ance of  the  country,  "green  with  the  dew  of  heaven," 
and  rejoicing  in  the  labour  of  its  inhabitants  ;  and  in  the 
smiles  of  contentment  that  are  so  generally  spread  upon 
the  countenances  of  a  grateful  people.  Nor  need  we 
travel  beyond  the  boundaries  of  our  own  County,  to  wit- 
ness the  rapid  advances  that  have  been  made  during  the 
short  period  of  the  existence  of  this  Society,  and  which 
furnish  the  best  commentary  upon  the  motives  of  its 
founders.     Yes,  the  spirit  of  improvement  has  gone  forth. 


through  our  vallies  and  over  our  plains  :  its  march  upon 
our  hill-tops  is  that  of  a  giant  in  his  strength  :  its  course 
is  not  to  be  obstructed  by  jealousy,  by  ignorance,  or  by 
parsimony  :  it  crushes  beneath  its  feet  alike  the  useless 
traditions  of  our  predecessors,  and  the  ridiculous  theories 
of  fanciful  innovators :  its  progress  is  directed  by  science, 
by  reason,  and  by  experience;  and  its  footsteps  may  be 
traced  by  fertility  and  by  abundance.  On  every  side, 
the  senses  are  regaled  with  all  that  is  fragrant  and  de- 
lightful. Fields  of  the  highest  culture,  orchards  of  bend- 
ing fruit,  and  barns  of  loaded  treasures  salute  the  eye. — • 
In  our  streets,  the  ear  is  greeted  with  the  sound  of  the 
hammer,  the  spindle,  and  the  loom ;  and  every  breeze 
is  mingled  with  the  lowingof  our  vallies,  and  the  bleating 
of  the  Jiocks  upon  a  thousand  hills. 

At  this  sober  season  of  the  declining  year,  when  our  in^* 
ordinate  passions  fade  with  the  fading  leaf — when  our  en- 
vies, our  little  jealousies,  and  local  prejudices  should  all 
be  buried  in  an  overwhelming  tide  of  thankfulness  to  the 
Giver  of  all  Good,  for  the  many  favours  so  bountifully 
showered  down  upon  our  land — who  does  not  feel  his 
patriotism  revived  ?  Who  does  not  feel  encouraged  to 
renewed  and  more  vigorous  exertions  in  the  great  work 
of  encouraging  domestic  industry  ? 

But  let  us,  Fellow-Citizens,  recollect  that  for  our  advan- 
tages we  are  not  indebted  to  any  peculiar  excellence  of 
soil  or  climate.  A  large  proportion  of  the  globe,  far 
behind  us  in  improvement,  is  more  highly  favoured  in 
these  particulars  than  our  native  home.  No  :  there  are, 
under  Divine  Providence,  certain  moral  causes,  our  en- 
lightened Institutions,  that  have  given  to  our  land  a  splen- 
dour that  Nature  denied  it.  Without  these,  barrenness 
and  poverty  would  have  still  reigned  in  silent  desolation 
over  these  fields,  that  have  so  recently  been  reclaimed 
from  the  wilderness.  It  is  these  causes,  Citizens  of  the 
County  of  Worcester,  that  have  given  to  so  many  of  your 
sons  their  opulence  and  their  elevated  rank  in  this  s"^^ 


G 

many  of  our  sister  States.  It  is  tliese,  that  enable  so 
many  of  jou  to  see  "  distinguished  talent  and  liigh  public 
trust  resting  where  your  names  rest." 

And  while  reviewing  the  progress  of  our  County  in 
Husbandry  and  the  Arts,  and  with  each  returning  year 
finding  more  abundant  causes  for  exulting  in  our  success, 
is  not  this  anniversary  a  proper  season  to  inquire  whether 
a  correspondent  advance  has  been  made  in  those  greater 
objects  that  are  equally  under  our  control,  and  which  are 
the  causes  of  these  blessings  ?  With  our  increased  popu- 
lation, and  the  means  of  doing  good,  have  we  done  more 
towards  the  education  of  our  children  and  youth  ?  Have 
we  been  more  liberal  in  the  support  of  our  public  and 
private  Schools  ?  Are  our  Social  Libraries  increased  ? 
Have  School  Books  and  copies  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
been  placed  in  the  hands  of  our  destitute  neighbours  ? 
Are  the  institutions  of  the  Lord's  day,  those  Schools  for 
children  of  a  larger  groicth,  been  better  supported  and 
more  generally  attended  ?  Are  our  municipal  concerns 
free  from  embarrassment,  and  under  proper  regulation  ? 

Is  the   standard  of  public  morals  more  elevated  ? 1 

know  that,  from  many  of  our  towns,  these  questions  would 
receive  favourable  responses  ;  but  if  negligence  any  where 
exists,  it  peculiarly  behoves  the  possessors  of  the  soil  to 
see  that  a  remedy  is  provided.  The  character  of  your 
towns  is  determined  by  these  things  :  your  own  respecta- 
bility and  happiness  and  that  of  your  children  depend  up- 
on them.  The  tenure  of  our  lands  is  allodial :  we  our- 
selves hold  the  fee-simple^  and  are  accountable  to  no  liege 
lord.  But  not  so  the  institutions  of  our  fathers  :  of  them 
we  are  in  the  line  of  transmission — we  are  barely  tenants 
for  life,  and  posterity  will  hold  us  impeachable  for  ivaste 
or  for  alienation. 

The  system  of  furnishing  public  instruction  to  the  whole 
population,  by  a  tax  upon  the  estates,  has  been  practised 
here  for  two  ccnturie?,  and  has  been  followed  by  the  most 
happy  results.     It  is  considered  by  our  most  distinguish- 


ed  statesmen  as  *•  a  wise  and  liberal  system  of  police,  by 
which  property  and  hfe  and  the  peace  of  society  are  best 
secured."  It  renders  unnecessary  those  more  violent 
and  expensive  methods  to  which  other  governments  have 
been  compelled  to  resort,  to  restrain  the  licentious  pas- 
sions of  their  subjects.  Notwithstanding  the  great  in- 
crease of  our  numbers,  and  the  varied  employments  that 
they  are  constantly  pursuing,  it  is  comparatively  rare  that 
ihe  penal  code  is  called  to  exert  itself  upon  one  of  our  na- 
tive citizens.  Who  is  more  interested  in  a  continuance  of 
this  state  of  things  than  the  landholders  of  New-England, 
"where  the  meanest  labourer  is  far  from  being  a  slave,  and 
to  whose  integrity  and  moral  principle  and  intelligence  we 
are  often  obliged  to  trust  ?  A  degree  of  mental  cultiva- 
tion is  essential  to  the  happiness  of  a  Farmer,  as  well  as  a 
security  for  his  rights.  His  occupation  is  furnishing  him 
with  constant  opporti!inities  to  reflect  upon  the  dignity  of 
his  moral  nature.  The  smiles  and  the  frowns  of  Provi- 
dence affect  his  interests  immediately,  without  the  inter- 
vention of  second  causes.  Every  object  around  him  leads 
to  the  most  sublime  and  interesting  contemplations  ;  and 
if  pursued  with  proper  feelings,  must  lead  to  the  most 
"beneficial  effects  to  his  character.  Let  our  hterary  insti- 
tutions decay,  (as  appears  to  be  the  wish  of  modern  inno- 
vators) and  but  a  few  generations  will  pass  before  our  de- 
scendants from  the  Hesperian  gardens  of  the  West  will 
look  in  vain  for  the  neat  School-Houses,  for  the  Temples 
of  Religion,  and  for  the  decent  Grave-Yards  of  their  an- 
cestors. The  traveller  may  indeed  find  a  bloated  popu- 
lation— he  may  find  fields  of  rank  luxuriance — he  may 
hear  the  noise  of  the  Mechanic,  and  see  the  busy  stir  of 
commerce  ;  but  it  will  be  a  '  barren  splendour,''  a  '  sicJdy 
greatness,''  a  ^florid  vigour,''  betokening  disease,  decay 
and  death.  Instead  of  the  present  happy  distribution  of 
property,  he  will  find  the  lands  and  the  wealth  engrossed 
by  a  few  supercilious  lordlings,  looking  down  upon  the 
labouring  Farmer  and  the  Mechanic  as  an  inferior  ra,ce  of 


e 

"beings.  Instead  of  the  Church-going  hell,  summoning  h?n» 
to  the  house  of  prayer,  he  will  find  the  Sabbath  hailed  as 
a  day  of  luxurious  festivity,  of  noisy  mirth,  and  of  vulgar 
dissipation.  Instead  of  the  general  diffusion  of  learning, 
he  will  find  a  chosen  few  appropriating  to  themselves  all 
the  valued  treasures  of  science  ;  but  their  knowledge  will 
be  too  lofty  or  too  refined  to  pass  current  among  the  pec* 
pie,  and  ignorance  and  darkness  will  overspread  the  land. 
Instead  of  domestic  security,  the  travelfer  will  find  those 
homes,  where  once  was  enjoyed  ""  undisturbed  sleep  with- 
in unbarred  doors,"  beset  by  excisemen  and  gens  d'^armes 
by  day,  and  in  the  hours  of  darkness  surrounded  by  the 
prowlings  of  the  thief,  the  lurkings  of  the  robber,  and  the 
whispers  of  the  assassin.  The  spy  and  informer  will 
glide  into  every  retreat,  and  follow  your  descendant  even 
among  the  birches  and  shrub-oaks  that  will  conceal  the 
neoflected  tombstones  of  his  fathers.  "  Corruption,  like 
a  general  flood,"  will  desolate  the  land,  and  sweep  away 
in  its  progress  all  that  is  peculiar  and  valuable  in  our 
equal  laws.  Discontent  and  misery  will  sit  brooding  up- 
on the  countenances  of  the  people,  who,  wearied  out  with 
continual  changes,  and  in  listening  to  a  succession  of  dem- 
agogues, will  be  prepared  to  surrender  the  remnant  of  their 
liberties  to  the  iron  grasp  of  a  Dictator.  Then  "  farewell, 
a  long  farewell"  to  all  New-England's  greatness. 

Political  economists  have  generally  traced  national 
Tfiealth  to  three  great  sources,  Agriculture^  Manufactures, 
and  Commerce,  These  form  the  parts  of  that  vast  cord 
that  encircles  and  binds  together  the  discordant  elements 
of  political  society.  They  are  mutually  dependent,  each 
upon  the  other,  for  the  general  strength  they  unitedly  af- 
ford. Essentially  injure  one  of  these  great  interests,  and 
you  destroy  or  weaken  the  whole.  In  advocating  the 
cause  of  the  one,  therefore,  it  is  not  the  part  of  wisdom 
to  manifest  any  hostility  towards  the  others.  We  are  as- 
sociated for  the  promotion  o(  Agricidture  dind  Manufac- 
tures, but  not  in  opposition  to  Commerce  ',  because,  with- 


9 

out  proper  facilities  for  the  exchange  of  our  commodities, 
our  favourite  pursuits  would  languish  and  decay.    Neither 
let  it  be  supposed,  that  in  our  encomiums  upon  Husband- 
ry, we  intend  to  derogate  any  thing  from  the  importance 
of  Manufacturing.     Most  of  the  handicraft  trades  are  es- 
sentially connected  with  the  cultivation  of  the  earth;  and 
"without  these  facilities  our  labours  would  be  almost  in 
vain.     When  therefore  we  speak  o(  Agriculture,  we  wish 
to  be  understood  as  including  all  those  branches  of  domes- 
tic manufacture  by  which  the  cultivation  of  the  earth  is 
promoted.     Without  the  use  of  iron,  for  instance,  the 
fields  of  Massachusetts  would  yield  but  a  meagre  harvest. 
Nor  would  we  be  limited  to  this  riew  of  the  subject.     No 
real  friend  to  New-England,  no  wise  man,  that  has  watch- 
ed her  progress,  that  has  compared  her  situation  with ' 
that  of  the  wealthiest  countries  of  Europe,  but  must  admit 
that  the  time  is  approaching  when  she  must  be  an  exten- 
sive manufacturing  district.     Circumstances  beyond  our 
control,  have  rendered   it  necessary  that  some  of  the 
streams  of  our  surplus  capital  should  be  turned  into  this 
channel.     By  a  judicious  management,  this  wealth  will 
not  be  lost  to  us  :   it  will  become  absorbed  in  the  soil — it 
will  be  prevented  from  flowing  to  too  great  a  distance — 
and  thus  it  may  diffuse  a  more  general  fertility.     In  the 
present  languishing  state  of  commerce,  this   probably  is 
the  only  mode  by  which  we  can  retain  our  surplus  popu* 
lation  and  our  resources  among  ourselves.     Time  and 
circumstances  will  probably  accomplish  all  that  the  most 
sanguine  "friend  to  domestic  industry"  can  desire.     The 
controversy  that  has  so  long  agitated  the  com.munity  upon 
this  subject,  is  merely  upon  the  degree  of  encouragement 
that  is  proper  to  be  given  to  this  branch  of  employment. 

To  adjust  the  jarring  interests  of  Commerce  and  Manu- 
factures, seems  to  hdive  been,  of  late,  a  great  part  of  the 
business  of  the  Grand  Council  of  our  nation.     That  they 
should  be  encouraged  and  protected,   the  €nhghtened 
2 


Farmer  does  not  object.  But  may  not  the  inquiry  be 
permitted,  why  the  encouragement  oi  Agriculture  should 
so  seldom  be  a  topic  of  discussion  ?  When  the  Imports 
and  Excises  fail  to  replenish  the  treasury,  we  hear  much 
of  the  productive  nature  of  a  Land-Tax,  and  the  certain- 
ty and  ease  with  which  it  may  be  collected  !  When  an 
army  is  to  be  raised,  there  is  a  never-failing  resource  of 
recruits  among  the  hardy  Yeomanry  o{  the  country !  It 
is  true,  the  details  of  this  interest  occupy  but  a  small 
space  in  our  luminous  Treasury  reports  :  it  is  scarcely 
seen  amid  the  bustle  of  the  wharf  and  the  ware-house. — 
Nor  does  it  attract  the  gaze  of  the  traveller  like  the  mo- 
tions of  a  steam-engine,  the  buzz  of  an  army  of  spindles, 
or  the  clatter  of  a  host  of  power-looms  :  its  progress  is 
gradual  and  silent,  as  the  growth  of  its  products.  But 
Agriculture  is  the  life-blood  of  this  nation  :  it  clothes  and 
it  feeds  our  ten  millions  of  inhabitants :  it  forms  more 
than  three-fourths  of  our  domestic  exports,  and  more  than 
lialf  of  all  the  exports  of  our  extensive  commerce  :  it  is 
the  solid  Tuscan  base  that  supports  the  august  fabric  of 
civil  society*  Without  it,  Labour  would  languish  for  em- 
plovment — Trade  and  the  Arts  for  materials  of  workman- 
ship and  articles  of  exchange — the  massy  Doric  column 
and  the  ornamental  Corinthian  capital  would  tumble  into 
ruins,  and  serve  only  to  desolate  what  they  now  support 
and  embellish. 

The  solid  and  durable  character  of  the  capital  stock 
added  to  any  section  of  a  country  by  Husbandry,  affords 
a  striking  contrast  to  the  transitory  and  fluctuating  nature 
of  that  acquired  by  the  pursuits  of  Trade.  A  Merchant, 
it  has  often  been  observed,  is  a  citizen  of  the  world,  and 
not  necessarily  an  inhabitant  of  any  particular  nation  : 
his  fortune  is  literally  afloat,  and  he  may  change  it  with 
every  shifting  breeze.  Not  so  with  the  Husbandman :  his 
capital  is  annexed  to  the  soil  he  inhabits,  and  becomes 
identified  with  its  dearest  interests.  If,  from  caprice  or 
disalTection,  he  changes  his  domicil,  the  fruits  of  his  toil, 


11 

bis  industry  and  bis  enterprize  remain,  to  form  an  integral 
part  of  the  capital  stock  of  the  district  where  it  was  accu- 
mulated. The  volatility  of  a  trading  capital  may  be  liken- 
ed to  the  element  upon  which  it  is  generally  earned.  Un- 
stable as  the  ocean,  it  flows  and  it  ebbs  with  every  tide — 
while  the  stock  earned  by  improvements  upon  the  land  is 
as  permanent  as  the  soil  from  whence  it  is  derived,  fixed 
as  our  native  hills,  and  as  durable  as  the  masses  of  granite 
upon  which  they  rest. 

The  ordinary  events  of  war,  of  peace,  of  changes  in  the 
policy  of  governments,  most  generally  affect  the  sources 
of  commercial  profit,  and  often  leaves  them  completely 
dried  up ;  but  that  wealth  that  results  from  fertilizing  the 
national  domain,  cannot  be  materially  affected,  only  by 
those  lasting  depredations  that  devastate  whole  provinces. 
As  a  practical  illustration  of  these  principles,  revert  for  a 
moment  to  the  map  of  the  world  ;  and  first,  behold  Egypt, 
that  celebrated  granary  of  the  East,  from  times  of  patri- 
archal antiquity,  when  the  Husbandmen  of  Canaan  went 
down  to  buy  corn.  Who  does  not  recognize  the  period  to 
which  we  allude,  that  recollects  the  twelve  brethren  at 
the  Egyptian  court  ?  No  one  can  forget  the  narrative 
that  is  associated  with  his  earliest  recollections,  and  which 
he  finds  as  instructive  to  him  as  a  parent  as  it  was  inte- 
resting to  him  as  a  child.  Egypt,  through  the  long  line 
of  her  Pharaohs  and  her  Ptolemies,  the  succession  of  her 
Mamelukes^  her  Beys  and  her  Pachas,  for  a  period  of  more 
than  forty  centuries,  by  Agriculture  alone,  has  been  ena- 
bled to  furnish  bread  to  her  neighbours  ;  and,  it  is  said, 
is  now  about  entering  into  competition  with  this  distant 
region  in  supplying  the  European  market  with  our  most 
important  staple,  the  article  of  Cotton.  And  thus,  not- 
withstanding the  exactions  and  oppressions  of  the  worst 
government,  is  blessed  with  resources  as  redundant  as  her 
Nile,  and  as  imperishable  as  her  pyramids. 

Look  now  at  Spain,  fallen,  degraded  Spain  !  once  the 
possessor  of  both  the  Indies,  and  the  controller  of  theii 


12 

wealth — once  rich  in  an  enterprizing  comnnerce  with  her 
own  colonies  and  the  whole  world.  With  the  spices  of 
the  East  and  the  gold  of  the  West,  she  commanded  the 
trade  of  Europe. 

*■''  Proud  swelPd  her  tides  "with  loads  of  freighted  ore, 
*'  And  shoutiug  folly  hail'd  them  from  her  shore." 

But  every  galleon  that  entered  her  port  brought  with  it 
the  seeds  of  weakness  and  decay.  Her  kings  were  fur- 
nished with  the  means  of  engaging  in  the  most  destructive 
wars.  Her  nobles  were  dazzled  with  the  glare  of  boundless 
wealth.  The  national  industry  lost  its  elasticity.  With 
the  expulsion  of  the  Jews  and  the  Moors  at  least  a  mil- 
lion of  her  most  thriving  mechanics  and  husbandmen  were 
lost  forever.  The  most  oppressive  and  unequal  tax  upon 
every  sale  of  certain  commodities  has  destro'yed  her  inter- 
nal trade  and  her  manufactures.  And  what  must  be  the 
state  of  Agriculture  under  a  system  that  allows  the  privi- 
leged  orders  to  drive  their  flocks  of  thousands  through  dif- 
ferent provinces  for  the  benefit  of  pasturage,  prostrating 
in  their  course  alike  the  crops  as  well  as  the  fences  of  the 
unfortunate  tenantry.  Her  local  situation  and  her  physic- 
al advantages  are  probably  superior  to  those  of  any  other 
nation  ;  but,  deluded  by  the  glare  of  commercial  wealth, 
she  has  pursued,  for  centuries,  a  policy  that  has  palsied 
her  Manufactures  and  blasted  her  Husbandry.  Her  man- 
ufactures of  iron,  of  steel  and  of  tin  now  furnish  employ- 
ment to  thousands  of  English  labourers.  And  our  own 
native  hills  at  this  moment  exult  in  the  choicest  of  her 
flocks.  Bending  beneath  the  most  abject  superstition,  this 
once  gallant  nation  now  lies,  cowled  and  hooded,  extend- 
ed upon  her  own  Escurial,  a  humble  tributary  to  France, 
realizing  the  gigantic  idea  of  Louis  XIV,  when  his  grand- 
son ascended  her  abject  throne,  *'  There  are  no  longer  Pi/- 
renees,^'^  The  lofty  barriers  erected  by  nature,  to  defend 
her  imbecility  from  the  inroads  of  Gallick  armies,  have 
faded  and  passed  away  before  the  touch  of  Gallick  cor- 
ruption. 


IS 

Where  are  the  seventy-two  Hanse  towns  that  in  the 
thirteenth  century  burst  the  iron  bands  of  feudal  tyranny, 
and  formed  that  powerful  confederacy  that  for  so  long  a 
time  engrossed  the  commercial  wealth  of  Europe  ?  Most 
of  their  names  are  blotted  from  the  registers  of  mankind, 
and  the  places  where  many  of  them  stood  cannot  now  be 
pointed  out  to  the  inquiring  traveller.  But  Flanders,  on 
the  frontiers  of  the  most  warlike  kingdom,  and  the  scene 
of  their  greatest  devastations,  by  her  domestic  industry 
rises  superior  to  every  adversity.  The  armies  of  Austria 
and  France  have  often  laid  waste  her  provinces,  and  rob- 
bed her  of  every  thing  but  her  Agricultural  and  her  Man- 
ufacturing riches.  With  these  resources,  she  continues 
among  the  most  opulent  and  populous  of  the  continental 
Dations. 

But  we  need  not  recur  to  the  history  of  other  countries 
or  other  times.  There  is  scarcely  a  part  of  the  world 
that  exemplifies  the  truth  of  our  position  more  forcibly 
than  the  interior  of  New-England.  Every  obstacle  is 
here  yielding  to  the  all-subduing  power  of  human  indus*- 
try.  The  most  dreary  morasses,  the  most  rugged  declivi- 
ties are  annually  submitting  to  the  diligence  of  our  Farm* 
ers  ;  and  our  tumbling  cataracts  are  held  in  durance  by 
the  perseverance  of  our  enterprizing  Manufacturers.  If 
in  political  economy  one  principle  is  better  established 
than  any  other,  it  is  this,  that  country  is  the  richest  and  the 
most  indepeiident,  whose  employment  of  capital  and  labour 
furnishes  the  means  of  supporting  the  greatest  population  at 
the  least  expense.  With  this  principle  in  view,  can  any 
doubt  the  policy  of  encouraging  the  objects  of  this  So- 
ciety ? 

Come,  then,  Fellow-Citizens  !  Patriots !  ye  who  aro 
connected  to  our  soil  by  the  ties  tf  ancestry,  of  fortune, 
©r  of  home — ye  who  reverence  New-England  as  the  land 
of  your  birth,  and  identify  with  her  hills  and  her  vallies 
the  places  of  your  earliest  associations — ye  who  contem- 
plate her  advancement  v;ith  delight — come  and  devote  a 


14 

portion  of  your  time  aad  your  talents  to  the  cultivation  of 
her  soil,  in  improving  her  husbandry,  in  dissipating  the 
mists  of  vulgar  prejudices  that  time  and  superstition  and 
ignorance  have  hung  around  this  art.  No  longer  suffer 
the  mortification  of  seeing  the  most  enterprizing  of  your 
sons  annually  calling  for  the  portion  of  goods  that  may 
fall  to  their  share,  joining  themselves  to  citizens  of  far 
countries,  and  if  not  wasting  their  substance^  at  least  ap- 
propriating the  fruits  of  your  toil  in  regions  far  from  the 
institutions  and  sepulchres  of  their  fathers. 

Ye  men  of  affluence  I  come  and  bestow  a  portion  of 
your  wealth  in  improving  the  face  of  that  earth,  from 
whence  your  treasures  were  derived.  If  managed  with 
the  same  discretion  that  marks  the  direction  of  your  ordi- 
nary concerns,  you  will  not  find  it  an  unprofitable  invest- 
ment. It  will  be  placing  a  part  of  your  property  where  or- 
dinary changes  cannot  corrupt  it,  and  where  the  hands  of 
violence  cannot  plunder  it.  It  is  a  mistaken  idea  that  farm- 
ing under  any  circumstances  is  an  unprofitable  pursuit. — 
"Without  discussing  the  subject,  permit  me  to  inquire,  from 
whence  is  derived  the  annual  support  of  our  population  in 
a  style  of  expense  (and  for  which  we  ought  to  blush)  supe- 
rior to  that  of  any  other  people  upon  the  globe  ?  Whence 
the  enormous  sums  that  are  annually  expended  in  education 
and  charity  ?  Whence  our  roads,  our  bridges,  our  halls 
of  justice,  our  temples  of  worship,  and  that  splendid  galaxy 
of  edifices  for  public  instruction  that  marks  our  land? — 
All  that  founded  them,  and  all  that  supports  them,  springs 
from  the  soil.  But,  besides  the  pecuniary  profit  and  the 
security  to  yourselves  and  posterity,  you  will  realize  from 
farming  a  thousand  delightful  anticipations  and  ten  thou- 
sand heartfelt  recollections.  You  will  awaken  in  the  la- 
bourer the  spirit  of  industry,  and  encourage  him  with  the 
hope  of  independence.  You  will  also  have  the  satisfac- 
tion of  contributing  that  noblest  of  all  charities,  that  does^ 
Bot  merely  relieve  poverty,  but  Yi\\\ch  prevents  it. 


15 

And  ye  men  of  piety  and  devotion — ye  who  minister 
as  well  as  ye  who  worship  at  the  altar  of  our  commoQ 
faith — come,  and  lend  your  aid  to  that  pursuit  that  was 
imposed  on  man  in  his  innocence,  and  which  he  never 
abandoned  until  the  earth  was  filled  with  violence.  Do 
not  your  visions  of  the  future  destinies  of  our  nation  min- 
gle themselves  with  the  glories  of  the  whole  earth,  at  the 
latter  days,  when  the  moral  renovation  of  the  human 
character  shall  be  accompanied  by  a  like  improvement  in 
the  physical  creation  ?  That  glorious  period,  "  foretold 
by  prophets,  and  by  poets  sung,"  we  believe  must  be  per- 
fected by  the  more  general  prevalence  of  Christianity,  and 
by  permitting  it  to  influence  men  in  their  social  relations 
as  well  as  in  their  individual  capacities.  But  may  it  not 
be  induced  by  cultivating  those  domestic  virtues  and  em- 
ployments whose  tendency  is  to  soften  the  asperities  of 
men,  and  unite  them  in  brotherly  love — those  occupa- 
tions that  will  cause  the  weapons  of  human  destruction  to 
be  converted  into  implements  of  husbandry,  that  nations 
may  learn  war  no  more  ?  Who  can  contemplate  without 
emotions  the  period,  when  the  great  human  family  shall 
be  scattered  over  the  whole  earth,  dwelling  in  quiet  rest- 
ing-places, sitting  each  under  his  own  vine  and  Jig-tree, 
without  any  to  moltst  ?  "  Every  valley  shall  he  exalted, 
and  every  mountain  brought  low,^'^  "  The  wilderness  and 
the  solitary  place  shall  be  glad^  and  the.  desert  shall  rejoice 
and  blossom  as  the  rose^^^ 


OFFICERS 

OF   THE 

WORCESTER  AGRICULTURAL  SOCIETY, 

ELECTED  APRIL,    1824. 


LEVI  LINCOLN,  President. 

Aaron  Tufts,  First  Vice-President. 

William  Stedman,  Second  do. 
Theophilus  Wheeler,   Treasurer. 
Oliver  Fiske,  Corresponding  Secretary. 
William  D.  Wheeler,  Recording  Secretary. 


TRUSTEES. 


James  Humphreys, 
Nathaniel  Houghton, 
Sampson  V.  S.  Wilder, 
Aaron  White, 
Salem  Town,  jr. 
Jonathan  Wheeler, 
Samuel  Daman, 
Jacob  Haskell, 
John  Thurston, 
Isaac  Southgate, 
Bezaleel  Lawrence, 
Benjamin  Davenport, 
Pearley  Hunt, 
Asa  Waters, 
Charles  Henshaw, 
Samuel  Mister, 
Joseph  Davis, 


Jonathan  Davis, 
Hutch  ins  Hapgood, 
Ward  N.  Boylston, 
Nymphas  Pratt, 
William  Foster, 
Stephen  Hastings, 
Jonas  L.  Sibley, 
Jonas  Ball, 
Bezaleel  Taf't,  jr. 
Lovett  Peters, 
Daniel  Waldo, 
John  W.  Hubbard, 
Edward  D.  Bangs, 
John  W.  Lincoln, 
Silas  Brooks, 
Samuel  Ward, 
Thomas  Chamberlain, 


— »>«©«444— 


Members  admitted  since  the  last  Publication. 
Joseph  Thayer,  Uxbridge,  April,  1818,  accidentally  omitted  heretofore. 


HARD  WICK. 

Samuel  Billing, 
Samuel  F.  Cutler. 

LEICESTER. 
Cheney  Hatch, 
John  Nelson. 

NE  W'BR.^INTREE. 
Key 63  Tufts. 

STERLING. 

Rufus  Hastings. 

SUTTON. 
Asa  Cummings,  jr. 


Edmund  Mills, 
Royal  T.  Marble. 

TEMPLETON. 

Asa  Hosmer, 
Joshua  Sawyer. 

RUTLAND. 

Josiah  Clark, 
James  Estabrook,  jr. 

UPTON. 
Eli  Warren. 

WORCESTER. 

Isaac  David- 


Benjamin  Howard, 
Austin  Denny, 
John  M.  Earle, 
Charles  Stearns, 
William  E.  Green, 
Theophilus  B.  Western, 
Loammi  I.  Hoadly, 
Cyrus  Stockwell, 
Pliny  Merrick, 
Frederick  W.  Paine, 
Timothy  W.  Bancroft, 
Joseph  Swett, 
Henry  Wheeler, 
John  F.  Clark, 
Charles  Allen, 
Bcnja.  F.  Farnaworth. 


REPORTS  OP  THE  SEVERAL  COMMITTEES. 


Committee  on  Milch  Cows  a7id  Fat  Cattle. 

Oliver  Fiske,  of  Worcester,  Chairman;  Jacob  Conant,  of  Ster- 
ling ;  Henry  Penniman,  of  New-Braintree  ;  Dexter  Fay,  of 
Soathborough  ;  Royal  Keith,  of  Grafton. 

THE  Committee  on  Fat  Oxen  and  Milch  Cove's  have  performed  the 
very  dilficult  duty  assigned  them,  with  their  best  skill  and  judgment,  as 
applied  to  the  view  of  the  animals  oifered  for  their  inspection,  and  to  the 
evidence  furnished  them  of  their  respective  merits.  Agriculturists  must 
be  aware  that  the  most  careful  examination  of  an  animal  may  be  decep- 
tive, and  the  best  information  prove  incorrect.  This  remark  applies  to 
Milch  Cows  more  forcibly  than  to  any  other  animal  offered  for  premium. 
The  smallest  and  most  ordinary  looking  cow  in  the  farm-yard  is  often  the 
most  valuable  of  the  flock  for  a  dairy.  She  also  may  be  the  best  in  the 
pens  without  attracting  particular  notice,  while  one  of  large  size,  and  of 
commanding  points  and  proportion,  of  not  half  her  value,  is  preferred. — 
The  testimony  at  the  pens  is  seldom  the  best  evidence  the  nature  of  the 
case  admits :  not  because  the  owner  is  an  interested  witness,  and  prone, 
like  every  body  else,  to  fancy  his  own  possessions  the  best ;  but  from 
the  circumstance  that  the  dairy  is  managed  by  the  other  partner  of  the 
Jirm^  and  that  he  has  not  been  conversant  with  the  amount  and  quality 
of  milk  which  any  cow  furnishes.  He  is  satisfied  if  she  is  called  a  good 
cow ;  and  probably  brings  her  to  the  Show,  relying  more  on  her  fine  ap- 
pearance than  on  her  intrinsic  worth.  These  difficulties  are  inherent  to 
the  duty  of  the  Committee.  A  worse  impediment  was  in  several  cases 
encountered.  From  the  inattention  of  the  owner,  the  Committee  could 
learn  only  his  name^  and  the  age  of  his  cow,  from  the  ticket  furnished  for 
the  pen.  This  preliminary  the  Committee  have  deemed  it  important  to 
make,  that  those  who  may  think  they  could  have  decided  better  may  at 
least  be  led  to  doubt  whether  more  competent  judges  would  have  come 
to  a  more  correct  decision. 

On  the  other  branch  of  their  services,  the  subject  of  Fat  Oxen,  the 
Committee  had  an  easier  task.  The  question  of  the  fattest  was  not  im- 
portant, as  it  applied  only  to  two  belonging  to  one  owner.  By  a  rule  of 
the  Society  no  person  can  obtain  one  premium  for  the  best,  and  another  for 
the  next  best  of  the  same  article.  The  premium  for  the  fattest  ox,  the 
Committee  must  confess,  was  not  adjudged  to  the  owner  with  reference 
to  the  best  and  cheapest  mode  of  fattening,  and  in  testimony  of  his  hav- 
ing produced  good  beef  in  a  profitable  manner,  as  a  guide  and  stimulus 
to  others  ;  but  as  in  part  remuneration  for  the  great  trouble  and  expense 
he  must  have  incurred  in  giving  attraction  and  credit  to  the  Show,  and 
in  further  demonstrating  to  the  world  the  capacity  of  our  native  breed  of 
C3.me  to  become  enormously  fat  zndijnmenseli/ large.  As  an  article  of 
food,  the  Committee  are  of  opinion  that  the  beef  by  the  hundred  weight 
was  better  a  year  ago,  and  that  the  owner,  carefully  notiug  the  items  of 
expense,  will  find  by  the  result  t^iat.  ag  an  article  of  profit,  it  was  also 
better  at  that  time. 


18 

There  is  a  point  In  the  fattening  of  beef  cattle,  beyond  which,  whethet 
for  consumption  or  profit,  an  useless  expense  commences.  This  point 
the  Committee  believe  to  be  when  the  fat  is  so  interspersed  with  the  lean 
as  to  render  the  flesh  what  is  termed  marbled.  The  juices,  from  this  ad- 
mixture, are  then  the  most  agreeably  blended,  and  the  meat  in  its  high- 
est excellence.  The  production  in  weight  after  this  period  is /orcerf /aZ- 
low^  that  can  be  made  and  purchased  at  comparatively  a  much  cheaper 
rate.  It  is  to  be  hoped,  however,  that  liberal  purchasers  will  award  to 
the  spirited  owner  a  premium  price  for  his  beef ;  and  that  the  extra  ex- 
pense may  be  so  parcelled  out  in  the  market,  as  to  be  averaged  upon  the 
publick-spirited  consumers. 

The  Fat  Oxen  submitted  to  the  view  of  the  Committee  were  but  four 
in  number;  two  owned  by  Col.  Seth  Wyman,  of  Shrewsbury,  one  by 
Stephen  Williams,  Esq.  of  Northborough,  and  one  by  John  VV.  Hubbard, 
Esq.  of  Worcester.  The  pair  offered  by  Col.  Wyman  were  the  fattest 
that  the  Committee  have  ever  seen  exhibited.  They  awarded  to  Col. 
Seth  W^yman  the  first  premium,  of  15  dollars,  for  his  red  ox — to  John  VV. 
Hubbard  the  second  premium,  of  10  dollars,  for  his  grass-fed  ox. 

Mr.  Williams''s  Steer,  from  Denton,  was  uncommonly  large  and  well- 
proportioned,  and  exhibited  the  excellent  points  in  this  superior  breed. — 
He  is  unquestionably  destined  at  another  season  to  command  the  first 
rank  in  the  pens.  His  failure  in  obtaining  the  second  premium  was  not 
on  account  of  his  being  less  valuable  in  any  particular  than  his  compet- 
itor ;  but  from  the  consideration  that  the  latter  acquired  his  flesh  in  one 
season,  after  having  been  worked  down  in  a  series  of  hard  labour. 

Nineteen  Cows  were  offered  for  premium,  and  all,  except  one,  of  our 
native  breed.  They  generally  had  the  appearance  of  extraordinary  val- 
v.e,  and  all  gave  evidence  of  intrinsic  worth.  Their  exhibition  afforded 
additional  proof  that  our  own  stock  of  cows  needs  no  other  improvement 
than  can  be  obtained  by  a  careful  selection  and  a  judicious  attention  to 
the  origin  and  management  of  her  progeny. 

In  determining  the  premiums  on  cows,  the  Committee  were  governed 
by  a  consideration  of  her  age — the  quantity  and  quality  of  the  milk — 
the  expense  of  her  keeping — how  early  her  milk  fails — and  how  long  she 
is  unproductive.  From  these  tests,  so  far  as  they  could  be  known,  they 
formed  their  opinion.  When  a  cow  has  arrived  at  her  prime,  every  suc- 
ceeding year  more  and  more  diminishes  her  value.  If  a  cow  at  four 
years  oldin  all  essential  qualities  is  equal  to  one  of  eight  years  old,  she 
•will,  most  probably,  at  that  a2;e  be  superior.  Her  increase  in  value  is  an 
annual  profit  to  the  owner,  while  the  other  is  yearly  declining.  Hence, 
at  that  age,  she  is  deserving  of  higher  consideration  as  a  milch  cow. — 
The  qiiantity  and  quality  of  the  milk,  although  perhaps  not  peculiar  to 
any  age,  is  an  essential  inquiry.  It  is  a  rare  occurrence  if  a  cow  greatly 
excels  in  both  ;  for  it  seems  to  be  a  fact,  predicated  upon  the  laws  of  na- 
ture, that  as  the  quantity  increases,  its  quality  must  be  diminished.  The 
propensity  to  drying  early  is  an  important  defect,  but  more  easily  cor- 
rected in  a  young  cow.  Every  farmer  knows  the  difference  in  cows  as 
■well  as  in  the  rest  of  his  stock,  with  respect  to  their  productiveness  on 
the  same  keeping.  A  disposition  to  do  well  on  ordinary  fare  is  a  peculiar 
good  trait  in  a  cow,  especially  for  such  families  as  have  not  the  means  of 
Icteping  more  than  one,  and  that  one  indifferently. 

I'rom  these  premises  the  Committee  adjudged  to  Nathaniel  Stowell,  of 
Worcester,  the  first  premium,  of  15  dollars — to  Nathaniel  Paine,  of  Wor- 
cester, the  second  premium,  of  10  dollars* — to  Benjamin  F.  Farnsworth, 
of  Worcester,  the  third  premium,  of  8  dollars. 

•  The  stcon'l  premium  was  awarded  to  Ju  Ige  Paine,  under  the  impression  that  he 
■was  owner  of  •'  ihiee  cewj  kipt  togethev."  This  not  being  the  fact,  thy  piemium  caii' 
not  he  rcctiTtil. 


19 

To  this  conclusion  the  Committee  could  not  arrive  without  great  de- 
liberation and  hesitancy.  The  essential  points  in  many  of  the  cows  were 
so  nearly  balanced,  that  another  set  of  judges  might  in  each  case  have 
decided  differently  without  any  impeachment  of  their  judgment.  Among 
the  unsuccessful  cows  particularly  noticed  for  prominent  good  qualities 
"was  Col.  Mixter's,  of  New-Braintree,  and  Col.  Bush's,  of  Boylston  :  they 
were  of  the  first  class,  but  not  represented  as  uncommon  in  the  duration 
of  their  productiveness.  Col.  Watson's,  of  Princeton,  was  large  and  one 
of  the  best  formed  cows  exhibited  ;  but  from  her  habitual  propensity  to 
flesh,  and  the  circumstance  that  she  had  generally  raised  her  calves, 
(two  of  which  were  present  to  attest  her  value,)  sufficient  evidence  was 
not  afforded  of  her  superior  excellence  for  the  dairy.  Mr.  Horatio  G. 
Henshaw's,  of  Worcester,  was  a  formidable  rival  to  Mr.  Farnsworth's, 
and  in  the  judgment  of  the  Committee  was  but  a  very  little  inferior. — 
Capt.  Harrington's,  of  Princeton,  Mr.  Rainger's  and  Mr.  Earl's,  of  New- 
Braintree,  at  any  former  Show  would  have  taken  a  commanding  stand, 
Mr.  Elisha  Sumner's,  of  Rutland,  had  a  sufficient  voucher  in  a  noble  calf 
by  her  side  that  she  is  a  first-rate  breeder;  but  as  she  had  always  reared 
her  calves,  no  judgment  could  be  formed  of  her  value  as  a  milch  cov/. — 
Mr.  Newell's,  of  New-Braintree,  had  every  appearance  of  having  been 
a  first-rate  cow,  but  her  age  (10  years)  had  essentially  diminished  her 
value.  Others,  not  particularly  recollected,  in  most  of  their  essential 
qualities  did  credit  to  their  judicious  owners;  and  the  Committee  regret 
that  the  restriction  of  premiums  prevented  their  selecting  a  much  larger 
number  of  excellent  cows  as  objects  of  a  more  flattering  and  substantial 
notice. 

Cows  for  exhibition  only,  were  offered  by  WardN.  Boylston,  Esq.  and 
the  Hon.  Judge  Lincoln,  gentlemen  who  have  ever  manifested  a  deep  and 
ardent  interest  in  the  reputation  and  prosperity  of  the  Society.  Mr. 
Boylston's  two  uncommonly  large  and  beautiful  cows  have  heretofore 
given  celebrity  to  our  Shows.  The  cows  exhibited  by  Judge  Lincoln, 
the  progeny  of  Denton,  in  their  younger  state  have  repeatedly  attracted 
attention  at  the  pens.  In  their  present  station  as  cows,  they  amply  con- 
firm their  early  promise,  and  unequivocally  demonstrate  the  value  of 
this  justly  celebrated  breed. 

In  behalf  of  the  Committee, 

O.  FISKE,  Chairman. 
October  13,  1824. 


Committee  on  Working  Oxen. 

John  W.  Hubbard,  of  Worcester,  Chairman  ;  Rufus  Barton,  of 
Millbury  ;  Asa  Cuinmings,  jr.  of  Sutton  ;  VViliiaoi  Foster,  of 
Southbridge  ;  William  Eag-er,  of  Northborough. 

THE  Committee  on  Working  Oxen  have  attended  to  the  duty  assio-n« 
ed  to  them. 

It  is  saying  a  great  deal  in  praise  of  the  show  of  Working  Oxen  exhib- 
ited to-day,  to  say  that  it -has  equalled  that  of  any  preceding  year.     And 
if  this  County  has  never  before  exhibited  a  finer  show  of  Working  Oxen 
your  Committee  do  not  know  where  they  should  look  for  one  superior  to 
it.     We  believe  we  inight  look  in  vain  even  to  the  country  of  John  Bnli 

himself — the  country  of  improved  short  horns  and  improved  long  horns 

of  the  Heretords  and  the  Teeswaters — the  Alderneys  and  the  Vigeloes 

the  country  where  1000  guineas  are  given  for  a  Bull,  and  500  for  a  Heifer. 


20 

In  proceeding-  to  remark  particularly  on  the  several  pairs  submitted  to 
their  adjiidication,  the  Co.nmittee  cannot  but  notice  one  serious  difficul- 
ty they  were  obliged  to  encounter,  in  making  up  their  opinions  :  this  is, 
the  very  imperfect  and  unsatisfactory  nature  of  the  trial  to  which  the 
oxen  are  subjected.  The  draft  of  a  heavy  load  on  a  cart  for  a  short  dis- 
tance, up  hill,  affords  very  uncertain  evidence  of  the  real  value  and 
power  of  the  animals.  Some  arc  naturally  much  more  slow  in  their  gait, 
and  laborious  in  their  manner  of  drawing,  than  others ;  though  at  the 
same  time  they  may  be  capable  of  performing  more  work  than  those 
>vhich  step  olT,  for  a  few  minutes,  more  handsomely.  Some  will  perform 
admirably  for  a  short  time,  but  would  fail  under  continued  hard  service. 
In  some,  the  great  vigour  and  activity  they  display  may  be  the  effect  of 
high  keeping  and  little  service  ;  and  this  would  not  appear  to  the  judges. 
Above  all,  some  are  much  more  intimidated  by  the  moving  crowd  about 
them  than  others,  and  from  this  cause  they  may  be  prevented  from  show- 
ing their  usual  power  and  docility.  We  can  all  see,  also,  that  there  is  a 
great  difference  in  the  skill  of  the  drivers.  A  judicious,  intelligent  farmer 
would  want  to  know  a  great  deal  more  respecting  a  pair  of  oxen  which 
he  was  about  to  purchase,  than  he  could  learn  from  such  a  trial  as  we 
witness.  He  would  wish  to  be  satisfied  whether  they  would  work  hard, 
day  after  day,  and  yet  hold  their  life  and  flesh,  eat  and  drink  well,  and 
fill  themselves  readily — whether  they  were  true  and  ready  at  all  times 
and  in  all  places — and  whether  they  were  in  reality,  in  all  important 
properties,  as  well  as  to  appearance,  well  matched.  But  from  such 
data  as  we  were  furnished  with,  we  were  obliged  to  form  our  opinions  ; 
and  we  submit  the  result,  relymg  on  the  candour  of  the  competitors. 

Seventeen  pairs  of  oxen  were  entered  for  drawing;  but  from  various 
circumstances,  eleven  pairs  only  were  subjected  to  the  trial.  A  very 
beautiful  pair  was  withdrawn  from  the  competition  by  Mr.  Asa  Cum- 
mings,  jr.  of  Sutton,  on  account  of  his  having  been  selected  as  one  of  the 
judges  in  this  department.  The  performance  of  these  oxen  at  the  plough- 
ing match  shewed  that  the  competitors  for  the  premiums  on  working  ox- 
en are  much  indebted  to  the  delicacy  of  Mr.  Cummings  in  withholding 
them  from  the  trial. 

1  lie  Committee  were  decidedly  of  opinion  that  where  old  and  young 
ca' tie  are  brought  into  competition,  if  the  younger  animals  perform  as 
well  or  nearly  as  well  as  the  older,  they  are  entitled  to  the  preference. 
This  opniion  operated  to  exclude  from  the  premiums  nearly  one  half  of 
the  oxen  brought  to  the  trial ;  and  of  these  some  were  very  large,  state- 
ly, noble,  and  valuable  cattle.  Of  this  description,  Stephen  Marsh,  of 
Button,  brought  to  the  trial  a  pair,  6  and  7  years  old.  Messrs.  Ward  k, 
Kice,  of  Worcester,  brought  into  the  competition  a  pair,  8  years  old  : 
these  were  of  great  size,  fine  proportion,  and  extraordinary  power  ;  and, 
considering  their  capacity  for  beef  as  well  as  for  work,  were  probably 
■worth  more  money  than  any  other  pair  on  the  field — but  much  hard  ser- 
vice had  diminished  their  activity  and  vigour.  The  pair  owned  by  Hen- 
ry Jkillard,  of  Holden,  8  years  old,  though  sturdy  and  excellent  in  the 
draft,  were  not  well  made,  nor  very  well  trained  :  they  were  better  cal- 
culated for  use  than  for  show — for  profit  than  for  pride  ;  though  the 
Committee  believe  that  smoother  and  handsomer  cattle  are  more  easily 
kept,  and  though  they  may  not  be  capable  of  doing  more  work,  are 
much  more  easily  and  cheaply  converted  into  beef.  The  7  years  old 
fjattle  of  Stith  Wyinan,  of  Shrewsbury,  were  an  elegant,  large,  well- 
matched  pair,  and  under  excellent  discipline:  they  performed  the  service 
to  which  they  were  subjected  with  grtat  ease  and  vigour :  they  were  in 
every  respect  creditable  to  the  distinguished  farmer  who  owns  them,  and 
who  has  exhibited  them  at  two  of  our  previous  Shows.     On  one  of  these 


21 

■former  occasions,  they  obtained  the  second  premium  as  working;  cattle, 
and  could  not,  therefore,  according  to  the  rules  of  the  Society,  obtain  any 
except  the  first  this  year  :  they  had  thus  but  one  chance  where  all  the 
others  had  four.  Seth  Hastings,  of  Mendon,  also  sent  to  the  trial  a  pair 
of  old  oxen,  which  added  to  the  agricultural  credit  of  the  distinguished 
citizen  who  is  their  owner. 

Of  the  younger  cattle  which  entered  the  lists,  two  pairs  were  4,  and 
lour  pairs  5  years  old.  Those  of  Silas  Dudley,  of  Sutton,  were  5 — rather 
small,  but  well  made  and  well  trained,  and  exhibited  remarkable  power 
for  their  weight.  Those  of  Royal  T.  Marble,  of  Sutton,  were  4  yeara 
old  only — in  every  respect  beautiful  and  valuable  cattle — smooth  and 
tight  built ;  and,  considering  their  ag-e  and  size,  of  astonishing  muscle 
and  power.  Those  of  Asa  Rice,  of  ^Vorcester,  5  years  old,  were  quite 
small  and  light,  and  not  remarkably  snug  and  thick-meated  ;  but  their 
vigour  and  activity  far  exceeded  the  expectations  the  Committee  had 
formed  from  their  appearance.  Mr.  Rice  has  been  for  several  years  a 
competitor  in  this  department  of  our  Shows,  and  has  this  year,  as  well  as 
before,  proved  himself  a  formidable  rival  of  the  Sutton  disciplinarians. 
Luther  Whiting,  of  Sutton,  brought  forward  a  pair  of  4  years  old.  They 
•were  remarkably  large  and  heavy  of  their  age  ;  and  it  was  in  conse- 
quence of  thus  early  attaining  a  very  large  size,  as  the  Committee  sup- 
posed, that  they  were  rather  slow,  and  drew  laboriously :  but  they  back- 
ed the  load  admirably,  better  than  any  others  on  the  field.  Samuel  Sib- 
ley, of  Sutton,  brought  to  the  trial  a  pair,  5  years  old — rather  unpromis- 
ing in  their  appearance — light  in  proportion  to  their  height  and  bones  ; 
but  the  Committee  were  agreeably  disappointed  in  the  vigour  and  prompt- 
ness with  which  they  drew  the  heavy  load  on  the  cart,  consisting  of  two 
tons,  gross :  but  they  were  not  sufiiciently  broad,  close  and  well  made  to 
be  either  handsome  or  profitable.  The  last  pair  subjected  to  the  trial 
v/ere  those  of  Sumner  Cole,  of  Sutton.  These  were  5  years  old,  and 
combined  all  the  excellencies  of  form,  power  and  discipline  for  which 
Sutton  oxen  are  so  justly  celebrated.  They  appeared  and  performed 
rather  better  than  any  others  submitted  to  our  adjudication ;  and  noth- 
ing prevented  their  obtaining  the  first  premium  but  the  fact  that  the 
pair  belonging  to  Mr.  Marble  were  very  nearly  equal  to  them,  and  a 
year  younger. 

On  the  whole,  therefore,  the  Committee  recommend  to  the  Society  tp 
^ive  the  1st  premium,  of  $15,  to  Royal  T.  Marble. 

2d  do.  of  $12,  to  Sumner  Cole. 
3d  do.  of  $10,  to  Silas  Dudley. 
4th       do.        of  $5,  to  Luther  Whiting. 

On  behalf  of  the  Committee, 

JOHN  W.  HUBBARD,  Chairman, 


Committee  on  Neat  Stock  other  than  Cows  and  Fat  Cattle. 

Rejoice  Newton,  of  Worcester,  Chairman;  Paul  Dudley,  of 
Douo^las  ;  Willard  Newton,  of  Southborough  ;  Levi  Bartlett, 
of  Rutland  ;  Lewis  Barnard,  of  Worcester. 

THE  Committee  on  Neat  Stock  other  than  Cows  and  Fat  Cattle, 
Report — That  they  have  witnessed  with  much  satisfaction  the  continued 
interest,  which  the  yeomanry  of  the  County  have  this  day  shown  that 


22 

they  feel  in  maintaining  the  reputation  which  they  have  heretofore  ac- 
quired. They  believe  that  the  Neat  Stock  usually  offered  at  our  exhi- 
bitions is  not  surpassed  by  that  of  any  other  Society  ;  and  they  hope  and 
have  renewed  reason  to  believe,  that  the  spirit  and  enterprize  of  the 
farmers  of  Worcester  County  will  never  suffer  any  other  Society  to  go 
before  them  in  this  staple  commodity. 

The  number  of  Bulls  which  your  Committee  have  examined  for  pre- 
mium is  thirteen — of  the  most  improved  breeds  of  imported  animals,  and 
of  the  best  breeds  of  our  native  stock.  Those  of  the  imported  breeds  are 
sufficiently  advanced  in  years,  and  are  accompanied  by  a  sufficient  num- 
ber of  the  same  kinds  of  stock,  to  show  their  great  value  in  the  breeding 
of  cattle  ;  and  it  is  found  that  generally  the  greater  number  of  fine  ani- 
mals are  from  those  breeds — though  there  are  some  exceptions  honoura- 
ble to  the  early  breeds  of  our  country. 

The  Committee  have  awarded  the  first  premium,  of  $15,  to  Col.  Jonas 
Ball,  of  Southborough,  for  his  3  year  old  Bull,  from  Denton.  He  has 
more  good  points  than  are  often  found  in  any  animal,  and  he  is  sufficient- 
ly advanced  in  years  to  have  arrived  to  his  permanent  growth  and  shape. 
They  have  awarded  the  second  premium,  of  $10,  to  Bezaleel  Taft,  jun, 
Esq.  for  his  2  year  old  Bull,  of  a  fine  native  stock,  from  which  so  many 
good  cattle  have  been  produced  in  the  town  of  Sutton.  Four  other  Bulls 
claimed  the  particular  attention  of  your  Committee.  That  of  Mr.  Zeph- 
aniah  Brown,  of  Charlton,  which  took  the  first  premium  last  year,  as  a 
Calf,  and  that  of  Mr.  Benjamin  Harrington,  which  took  the  second  pre- 
mium last  year ;  but  they  both  have  the  appearance  of  having  been  too 
much  forced  the  last  year  to  support  their  relative  standing,  though  they 
have  many  good  points.  That  of  Mr.  Daniel  King,  of  Charlton,  is  near- 
ly as  good,  without  the  appearance  of  having  a  premature  growth.  These 
three  are  from  Holderness,  and  are  rarely  equalled  by  any  of  our  native 
stock.  The  Bull  of  Mr.  Boylston  is  a  large  and  finely  made  animal,  but 
is  not  as  good  in  some  points  as  those  to  v^hich  premiums  are  given. 

Twelve  Bull  Calves  were  exhibited  for  premium.  The  first  premium, 
of  $6,  is  awarded  to  Mr.  Cheney  Hatch,  of  Leicester  ;  and  the  second, 
of  $4,  to  Mr.  Henry  Sprague,  of  Spencer;  not,  however,  without  much 
hesitation  and  a  division  of  the  Committee  bet^veen  those  of  Mr.  Sprague 
and  Capt.  James  Estabrook,  jr.  of  Rutland  ;  and  Capt.  Estabrook  ought 
not,  from  this  decision,  to  despair  of  having  as  good  a  Bull,  another  year, 
as  may  then  be  exhibited.  There  were  other  good  Calves,  but  which 
could  not  vie  with  the  three  above  mentioned,  unless  it  was  that  of  Mr. 
Sumner,  of  Rutland,  which  was  too  young  to  be  satisfactorily  estimated. 

The  Steers,  of  different  ages,  have,  this  year,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
Committee,  surpassed  those  of  any  former  year.  The  Committee  have 
awarded  the  only  premium  offered  for  those  of  four  years  old,  to  Mr.  Asa 
Cummings,  jr.  of  Sutton.  Several  other  pairs  offered  were  remarkable 
for  size  and  shape,  and  so  near  of  equal  goodness  that  your  Committee 
forbear  to  make  any  discrimination. 

Among  the  3  year  old  Steers,  the  Committee  were  much  divided,  and 
long  hesitated  ;  and  nothing  but  the  necessity  of  agreeing  brought  them 
to  a  decision.  They  awarded  the  first  premium,  of  $8,  to  Mr,  Stephen 
Marsh,  jr.  of  Sutton;  and  the  second  premium,  of  $5,  to  Mr.  Caleb 
Knight,  of  Charlton.  A  finer  collection  of  this  class  of  stock,  your  Com- 
mittee believe,  was  never  exhibited  at  any  Show. 

To  Daniel  Tenny,  Esq.  of  Sutton,  the  Committee  award  the  first  pre- 
mium, of  $7,  for  the  best  pair  of  2  year  old  Steers ;  and  to  Mr.  Benjamin 
Harrington,  of  Princeton,  the  second  premium,  or$4,  for  the  next  best. 
This  class  of  Steers  presented  difficulties  nearly  as  great  as  those  of  other 
ages  :  they  were  many,  and  of  superior  quality. 


23 

To  Mr.  Amos  Merrlam,  of  Princeton,  is  awarded  the  first  premium,  of 
^5,  for  Yearling-  Steers  ;  and  to  Col.  Jonas  Ball,  of  Southborough,  the 
second  premium,  of  $3,  for  the  next  best. 

But  two  3  year  old  Heifers  were  offered  for  premium,  and  your  Com- 
mittee did  not  think  either  of  them  of  such  superior  quality  as  to  merit  a 
premium.  Several  were  for  exhibition  merely — which  were  worthy  of 
preoiiums,  had  they  been  offered  for  that  purpose. 

For  2  year  old  Heifers,  the  Committee  award  the  first  premium,  of  $6, 
to  Mr.  Henry  Spra^ue,  of  Spencer ;  and  the  second,  of  $5,  to  Mr.  Luther 
Whiting,  of  Sutton. 

To  Mr.  Benjamin  Harrington,  of  Princeton,  they  award  the  first  pre- 
mium, of  $5,  for  the  best  Yearling  Heifer;  and  to  Col.  Jacob  W.  Wat- 
son, of  Princeton,  the  second  premium,  of  $4,  for  the  next  best. 

For  the  best  Heifer  Calf,  they  award  the  first  premium,  of  $5,  to  Col, 
Watson  ;  and  the  second,  of  $4,  to  Mr.  Harrington. 

The  Committee  cannot,  in  justice,  leave  the  subjects  of  their  inquiries 
"Without  some  notice  of  those  animals  offered  only  for  exhibition,  and 
which  fall  within  those  classes  particularly  confided  to  them. 

The  stock  which  Mr.  Williams  has  introduced  into  the  County  always 
claims  the  first  attention.  Although  the  progenitor  of  the  race,  which 
has  taken  the  head  of  our  pens,  and  stood  foremost  in  the  Show  from  the 
first,  has  this  day  left  his  place  for  others,  yet  his  numerous  descendants 
have  well  supported  his  reputation.  The  3  year  old  Heifer  descended 
from  him,  owned  by  Mr.  Williams,  presents  all  the  best  points  found  in  a 
good  milker,  and  which  are  calculated  for  the  best  stock  of  cattle,  either 
for  the  plough  or  the  stall.  Others  of  the  same  race,  which  are  too  nu- 
merous to  particularize,  show,  that  taking  them  all  in  all,  no  better  stock 
has  ever  been  found  in  this  or  any  other  country.  One  trait  in  this  stock 
proves  their  incalculable  value — which  is,  that  the  older  they  are,  the 
better  they  are  proportioned,  and  the  more  perfect  their  shape.  Judge 
Lincoln's  Heifers  of  this  breed  show  conclusively  their  value  as  milkers  ; 
and  his  other  animals,  exhibited  this  day,  bear  as  unequivocal  testimony 
to  their  worth  for  the  stall.  The  Bull  of  Mr.  Hubbard,  also,  is  a  sufficient 
Toucher  for  their  size  and  shape. 

Your  Committee  would  not  do  justice  to  their  own  feelings  should 
they  omit  the  stock  of  Mr.  Boylston,  though  only  a  part  of  it  falls  within 
the  classes  assigned  to  them.  The  Committee  know  not  the  origin  of 
his  stock  ;  but  this  they  know,  that  so  long  as  he  shall  continue  to  add 
to  the  interests  of  our  Show,  as  he  ever  has  done,  by  producing  such 
stock,  they  shall  ever  be  proud  to  acknowledge  him  as  a  Worcester 
farmer. 

Your  Committee  represent,  that  so  great  a  number  of  animals  is  as- 
signed for  their  examination,  and  the  time  allowed  them  so  short,  that  it 
is  nearly  impossible  to  satisfy  themselves  in  awarding  premiums  ;  and 
they  have  little  time  to  notice  those  offered  for  exhibition.  The  mere 
manual  labour  of  drawing  up  a  report  embracing  so  many  objects,  ought 
to  occupy  a  considerable  portion  of  the  time  which  is  necessarily  devoted 
to  the  examination.  Under  these  circumstances,  they  beg  leave  to  sug- 
gest the  propriety,  at  our  future  Shows,  of  dividing  the  labours  between 
two  or  more  Committees.  It  is  believed  that  justice  would  be  more 
likely  to  be  done,  and  many  fine  animals  offered  for  exhibition,  which 
Under  the  present  arrangement  escape  the  notice  of  a  Comnnittee,  would 
receive  that  attention  which  they  are  entitled  to,  and  which  their  own- 
ers expect, 

REJOICE  NEWTON,  -gtr  order. 


24 


Committee  on  Sheep. 

Jonas  L.  Sibley,  of  Sutton,  Chairman;  Joshua  W.  Leland,  of 
Grafton  ;  Moses  Kendall,  of  Barre  ;  Stephen  Davis,  of  Ox- 
ford ;  Edward  Howard,  of  Dudley. 

THE  Committee  on  Sheep  having  attended  to  the  duty  assigned  them^ 
submit  the  following  Report : — 

That  this  species  of  animals,  presented  for  premium,  was  not  in  such 
numbers,  and  most  of  them  not  of  such  properties  as  to  exhibit  a  fair 
sample  of  the  flocks  of  the  County.  Though  some  of  them  were  fine  an- 
imals, yet  a  large  proportion  were  not  of  a  superior  quality.  It  is  to  be 
lamented,  that  this  class  of  animals,  so  important  to  our  manufactures, 
and  so  profitable  to  the  farmer,  when  properly  managed,  should  be  so 
feebly  represented  at  our  Exhibitions.  The  growing  spirit  of  improve- 
ment in  agriculture,  and  the  honourable  emulation  which  exists  among 
the  yeomanry  of  our  County,  in  the  rich  display  of  Neat  Stock  at  our 
Shows,  leads  us  to  fear  that  our  farmers,  content  with  their  superiority 
in  Neat  Cattle,  have  neglected  in  some  degree  the  improvement  of  their 
Flocks^  to  maintain  the  high  reputation  of  their  Herds.  The  present  low 
prices  in  the  markets  of  all  agricultural  products,  the  increasing  demand 
for  wool  at  our  manufactories,  together  with  the  encouragement  and  pro- 
tection afforded  our  wool-growers,  by  a  late  Act  of  Congress  imposing  an 
additional  duty  on  foreign  wool,  present  strong  inducements  to  the  far- 
mer to  turn  his  attention  to  this  branch  of  husbandry.  The  soil  and  cli- 
mate of  our  County  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  rearing  of  Sheep,  and 
the  eflbrts  which  have  been  and  are  now  making,  to  introduce  into  our 
country  the  best  and  choicest  breed  of  fine-woolled  Sheep,  render  it 
Tnorally  certain  that  the  day  is  not  far  distant,  when  we  could  be  as  cel- 
ebrated for  the  superiority  of  our  Sheep  as  we  are  for  the  excellency  of 
our  Cattle. 

Your  Committee,  after  a  careful  examination  and  comparison,  having 
regard  to  the  size  of  the  animal,  and  more  particularly  the  fineness  and 
quality  of  the  fleece,  have  come  to  the  conclusion  and  do  award  the  fol- 
lowing premiums : — 

For  the  best  Merino  Ram,  to  Joseph  Thayer,  of  Uxbridge,    $10  :  00 

For  the  next  best  do.  do.  to  Isaac  Mills,  of  Worcester,  5  :  00 
For  the  four  best  Merino  Ewes,  to  Benjamin  N.  Childs,  of 

Worcester,  10 :  00 

For  the  next  best  do.  do.  to  Stephen  Marsh,  jr.  of  Sutton,  5:  00 
For  the  best  lot  of  mixed  Merino  Sheep,  to  James  Smith, 

of  Rutland,  5  :  00 

For  the  best  Native  Ram,  to  Levi  Jennison,  of  Shrewsbury,  6  :00 

For  the  best  Native  Ewes,  to  John  Temple,  of  V\  est-Boylston,  4  :  00 

The  Committee  avail  themselves  of  this  opportunity  to  remark,  that 
the  fine  Saxon  Ram,  exhibited  by  the  Hon.  Judge  Lincoln,  claimed  their 
particular  notice  ;  and  from  the  general  appearance  of  the  animal,  and 
the  quality  of  the  fleece,  we  have  no  hesitation  to  say  that  this  species 
of  sheep  merits  our  particular  attention  as  a  valuable  addition  to  our 
flocks.  The  same  gentleman's  lot  of  Merino  Ewes  presented  for  exhibi- 
tion only,  were  not  inferior  to  any  in  the  pens,  and  would  have  deserved 
a  premium,  had  any  been  claimed.  Rejoice  Newton,  Esq.  oi  Worcester, 
exliibitfcd  four  mixed  IMerino  Sheep,  which  were  of  a  superior  quality; 
but  the  number  was  not  sullicieut  to  entitle  them  to  a  premium. 

JONAS  L.  SIBLEY,  Chairman. 


j25 


Commiitee  on  Swine. 

iJoha  Davis,  of  Worcester,  Chairman  ;    John  Gleason,  jr.  of 
Worcester  ;  Charles  Brigham,  of  Grafton. 

THE  Committee  upon  Swine  having  attended  to  the  service  assig;ned 
them,  submit  the  following  Report : — 

They  are  much  gratified  in  being  able  to  state  that  they  found  the 
exhibition  of  this  kind  of  animal  furnishing  strong  proofs  of  improve- 
ment. They  do  not  recollect  having  seen  at  any  former  Show  so  many 
or  so  valuable  swine.  The  number  of  boars  found  in  the  pens  were 
seven  ;  and  the  Committee  have  awarded  to  Capt.  Lewis  Bigelow,  of 
Worcester,  the  first  premium,  of  $7,  for  a  fine  animal  of  his,  which  they 
understand  is  of  the  Bedford  breed,  descended  from  the  stock  of  Dr. 
Fiske,  and  was  decidedly  superior  to  any  other  exhibited. 

The  second  premium  the  Committee  are  of  opinion  (if  awarded  at  all) 
should  be  given  for  an  animal  entered  by  Maj.  Samuel  Graves,  but  be- 
longing to  the  town  of  Worcester,  and  raised  upon  the  farm  on  which  the 
poor  of  the  town  are  supported.  As  two  of  the  Committee,  however, 
are  inhabitants  of  Worcester,  they  have  declined  assigning  this  premium 
to  the  town,  and  have  not  awarded  it  to  any  other  competitor,  because 
the  third  member  of  the  Committee  was  decidedly  in  favour  of  giving 
it  to  the  town.  The  Committee  found  in  the  pens  nine  breeding  sows, 
six  of  which  were  ofiered  for  premium  ;  and  they  have  awarded  the  first 
premium,  of  $6,  to  Messrs.  Ward  &  Rice,  of  Worcester  ;  and  the  sec6nd, 
of  $4,  to  Mr.  Nathaniel  Stowell,  of  Worcester. 

The  Committee  would  here  observe,  that  the  duty  assigned  them  was 
difficult,  because  all  the  animals  of  this  description  are  superior,  and  in 
almost  any  other  competition  than  that  to  which  they  were  subjected 
would  have  carried  premiums.  Those  entered  by  Mr.  John  F.  Clark, 
Mr.  Nahum  Willington,  Mr.  Clark  Whittemore,  and  Mr.  William  Eaton, 
jun.  all  of  Worcester,  particularly  attracted  the  attention  of  the  Com- 
mittee, either  on  account  of  their  obvious  superiority  to  most  animals  of 
their  kind,  or  on  account  of  the  remarkable  progeny  which  surrounded 
them  ;  and  the  Committee  only  regretted  that  they  had  it  not  in  their 
power  to  reward  more  fully  a  competition  so  well  sustained. 

The  Committee  found  seven  persons  competitors  for  the  premium  of  $4 
upon  pigs,  and  they  have  awarded  it  to  Messrs.  \^'ard  &  R-ice,  of  Wor- 
cester, not  however  without  some  doubts  as  to  whose  lot  the  preference 
should  be  given.  The  pigs  offered  were,  without  exception,  such  as  the 
Committee  considered  as  furnishing  strong  proofs  of  improvement  in  the 
breed  of  swine.  Those  of  Mr.  Dudley,  of  Sutton,  and  Mr.  Stowell,  of 
Worcester,  very  justly  rendered  the  claim  of  Messrs.  Ward  &  Rice  to 
the  premium  doubtful. 

These  were  all  the  premiums  the  Committee  had  it  in  their  power  to 
award  ;  but  they  cannot  pass  from  this  subject  without  particularly  no- 
ticing the  swine  oifered  for  Exhibition  only^  by  the  Hon.  Oliver  Fiske  and 
Stephen  Salisbury,  Esq.  of  ^^'D^cester.  The  sow,  barrow,  and  pig  be- 
longing to  the  former  gentleman,  and  the  sow  and  pigs  belonging  to  the 
latter,  did  not  fail  of  attracting  the  particular  attention  of  the  Committee ; 
and  they  take  the  liberty  to  observe  that  they  have  rarely,  if  ever,  seen 
so  fine  an  exhibition  of  animals  of  this  kind.  Those  of  Dr.  Fiske  fully 
ai\stained  the  account  he  has  given  of  them  in  the  New-England  Farmer; 
and  it  is  some  proof  of  the  good  qualities  of  this  breed,  that  the  swine  of 
Messrs.  W^ard  &  Rice,  and  Mr.  Stowell,  as  well  as  Capt.  Bigeiow's,  are 
from  the  stock  of  Dr.  Fiske.  Mr.  Salisbury's  sow  and  pigs,  which  are  said- 
to  be  a  cross  of  the  same  breed,  were  not  excelled  by  auy  at  tbe  Show. 


26 

tiictsmucli  as  tfie  second  premium  for  boars  is  undisposed  of,  the  Com^ 
mittee  take  the  liberty  of  proposing  that  it  be  awarded  to  Mr.  Silas  Dud- 
ley, of  Sutton,  for  his  extraordinary  pigs,  which  are  very  large  and  fat, 
and  are  said  to  be  of  the  Grass-breed.,  so  called. 

The  Committee  Iiave  thus,  not  without  difficulty  and  embarrassraent, 
disposed  of  the  several  premiums  as  a  just  reward  to  the  enterprize, 
skill,  and  agricultural  attainments  of  those  who  entered  the  lists  as  com- 
petitors. They  cannot  however  close  their  labours  without  expressing  a 
■wish  that  the  attention  of  farmers  may  hereafter  be  effectually  directed 
to  a  further  improvement  of  this  kind  of  animal.  The  premiums  offered 
are  intended  to  direct  public  attention  to  this  branch  of  agricultural  econ- 
omy ;  and  if  they  produce  the  intended  result,  it  may  safely  be  said  that- 
ao  money  can  be  much  more  beneficially  expended.  Our  own  experi- 
ence and  that  of  our  fathers  has  long  since  established  the  fact  that  swine 
are  essential  to  a  good  system  of  agriculture.  The  pork  is  considered  as 
almost  indispensable  in  the  family  of  the  farmer,  and  is  a  productive 
source  of  income  in  the  market.  The  hams  are  destined  to  a  conspic- 
uous place  on  the  tables  of  the  rich — while  the  salted  meat  furnishes  a 
healthy  and  grateful  food  to  our  fishermen  and  sailors.  Though  the  hog 
is  not  formed  by  his  nature  or  his  habits  to  fill  so  large  a  space  in  our  af- 
fections as  many  other  animals ;  yet  for  most  of  the  useful  and  economic- 
al purposes  of  life,  he  is  scarcely  surpassed.  He  is  uncommonly  hardy- 
Jives  at  his  ease  in  almost  any  condition — sleeps,  and  grows  fat  upon  the 
orts  and  ends  of  the  farm.  He  demands  little  else  (till  the  process  of  fat- 
tening commences)  than  the  waste  of  the  house  and  farm.  The  wash  of 
the  dairy  is  to  him  an  excellent  beverage  ;  while  the  leaves  of  beets 
and  turnips,  and  even  weeds  themselves,  afford  him  a  rich  repast,  hi' 
deed,  his  appetite  is  so  well  adapted  to  the  consumption  of  what  we  have 
no  other  means  of  disposing  of,  that  the  poor  and  the  rich  keep  him  as  a 
sort  of  family  companion  :  nay,  even  populous  cities  permit  him  to  pa- 
rade their  streets,  with  beaux  and  belles.,  believing  him  to  be  the  best  of 
scavengers^  and  necessary  to  the  preservation  of  health.*  His  industry 
also  in  the  pen  contributes  largely,  by  enriching  the  fields  of  his  master, 
to  give  to  them  that  beautiful,  luxuriant  aspect,  which  delights  the  be- 
holder, and  raises  the  song  of  the  poet  in  praise  of  good  cultivation.  In 
so  many  ways  is  the  hog  allied  to  us — in  so  many  ways  is  he  useful,  and 
in  so  many  ways  is  he  profitable  ;  and  should  we  neglect  to  improve  his 
condition,  we  certainly  shall  fail  to  appreciate  his  worth. 
All  which  is  respectfully  submitted.  JOHN  DAVIS. 

JOHN  GLEASON,  jr. 
CHARLES  BRIGHAM. 

•  Great  numbers  of  sxvine  are  allowed  to  run  at  large  in  the  cities  of  New-York  am? 
Albany,  to  pevforra  the  office  oi  scavengers. 


Committee  on  Articles  manufactured  of  Wool^Cotto^^  and  Flay> 

Bezaleel  Taft,  jr.  of  Uxbridge,  Chairman  ;  John  Lees,  of 
VVcst-Boylslon  ;  Benjamin  Davenport,  of  Mention  ;  John  \\\ 
Stiles,  of  Worcester  ;  Charles  Parkman,  of  Westborough. 

TIH"' Committee  on  Articles  manufactured  of  Wool,  Cotton,  and  Flajf, 
having  carefully  attended  to  the  duties  of  their  appointment,  submit  the 
following  Report : — 

Your  Committee  cannot  but  regret  that  the  specimens  of  Domestic 
Maaufacture^have  been  less  numerous,  on  the  present  occasion,  than  af 


27 

any  preceding  anniversary  of  our  Society.  With  the  exception  of  a  fe^ 
pieces  of  Broadcloth,  not  a  yard  of  domestic  g-oods,  of  any  descrip- 
tion, were  presented  either  for  premium  or  exhibition.  To  what  cause 
to  impute  this  unpleasant  deficiency  your  Committee  is  totally  at  a  loss. 
We  are  aware  that  disting^uished  individuals  in  the  community  have  en- 
tertained sentiments  unfriendly  to  domestic  manufactures.  They  have 
viewed  in  every  rising  establishment  a  hot-bed  of  vice,  corrupting,  by  its 
baneful  influence,  our  moral  atmosphere,  and  to  be  shunned  like  the  box: 
of  Pandora ;  and  we  cannot  but  apprehend  that  our  manufacturing; 
brethren  have  imputed  to  our  Society  the  same  mistaken  views  in  rela- 
tion to  their  interest  and  usefulness.  We  assure  them,  however,  that  ii 
such  apprehensions  do  exist,  they  are  totally  unfounded.  The  Society 
is  deeply  impressed  with  the  importance  of  this  branch  of  industry,  anct 
have  identified  with  it  the  best  interests  of  the  community.  Our  valua-» 
ble  water  privileges  are  among  the  essential  resources  of  the  County — - 
important  alike  to  the  Agriculturist  and  the  Mechanic.  Heaven  haa 
given  them  to  us  as  a  mean  of  retaining  our  population,  increasing  oun 
wealth,  and  multiplying  our  comforts  ;  and  a  neglect  to  avail  ourselveai 
of  their  proffered  aid  would  be  an  ungrateful  return  for  its  bounteouei 
gifts.  If  our  Manufacturers  have  been  influenced  on  the  present  occasion 
by  an  apprehension  that  we  were  regardless  of  their  prosperity,  we  en- 
treat them  to  discard  the  illiberal  prejudice,  and  at  our  future  exhibition^ 
do  justice  to  themselves  and  our  County. 

After  examining  the  Broadcloths  exhibited  on  this  occasion,  your  Comr 
mittee  have  awarded  to  Messrs.  Howard  &  Slater,  of  Oxford,  for  a  Super- 
fine Blue,  cold  pressed,  the  premium  of  $15. 

Mr.  Anderton,  of  Leicester,  offered  to  our  attention  two  pieces  of  Blact 
Cloth,  but  little  if  at  all  inferior  to  the  cloths  of  Messrs.  Howard  &  Sla- 
ter ;  but  having  been  manufactured  without  the  County,  could  not  come 
in  competition  as  respects  the  premium. 

Mr.  John  Roberts,  of  Millbury,  presented  two  specimens  deserving  oui? 
particular  notice  and  high  commendation.- 

As  respects  Household  Manufactures,  your  Committee  are  highly  grat- 
ified that  they  are  justified  in  giving  you  a  more  favourable  report.  The 
specimens  of  female  industry  and  ing-enuity  to  which  our  attention  have 
been  directed  are  numerous  and  valuable,  manifesting  a  wonderful  im- 
provement in  the  manufacture  of  our  domestic  fabrics.  At  the  early  ex- 
hibitions of  this  Society,  a  large  portion  of  the  articles  offered  for  premium 
"Were  ordinary  in  their  appearance  and  otlier  essential  qualities.  On  the 
present  occasion  not  a  smgle  article  of  ordinary  character  has  engaged 
our  attention.  The  interest  manifested  by  the  Ladies  in  the  success  of 
our  exertions  entitles  them  to  our  highest  praise. 

With  a  very  sincere  desire  to  do  justice  to  our  fair  competitors,  we 
have  awarded  to  Mrs.  Sally  Flagg,  of  Worcester,  for  tlie  beet  Carpeting, 
4-4  wide,  the  first  premium,  of  $15. 

To  Mrs.  Eunice  Goodell,  of  VVest-Boylston,  for  the  best  Carpeting-, 
3-4  wide,  $10. 

Mrs.  Thomas  Chamberlain,  of  Worcester,  presented  a  specimen  very 
similar  to  the  one  offered  by  Mrs.  Flagg,  and  your  Committee  would 
probably  have  found  it  difficult  to  determine  their  relative  claims  to  the 
first  premium,  had  not  the  one  exhibited  by  Mrs.  Chamberlain  been  de- 
ficient in  length — that  circumstance  relieved  the  Committee  from  any 
embarrassment. 

To  Miss  Sophia  Merriam,  of  Osford,  for  the  best  Woollen  Cloth,  the 
first  premium,  of  $8. 

To  Mr.  Lovett  Peters,  of  Westborough,  the  second  premium,  of  $5. 


^8 

To  Mr.  Jonas  Pollard,  of  Bolton,  the  third  premium,  of  $^. 

To  iv/rs.  Elizabeth  lay,  of  New-Braiatree,  for  the  best  Flannel,  7-8 
wide,  the  rirst  premium,  of  $10. 

To  Mrs.  Sibbel  v^  ilcox,  of  New-Braintree,  the  second  premium,  of  $5* 

The  specinen  presented  by  Mrs.  Jonathan  Wilder,  of  Lancapter,  was 
in  the  estimation  of  your  Committee  decidedly  the  best  exhibited,  but 
not  o;  the  width  required  by  the  rules  of  the  Society. 

To  Miss  Polly  Lelaud,  of  Grafton,  for  the  best  Shirting  of  linen  warp, 
filled  with  tow,  7-8  wide,  the  first  premium,  of  $5. 

To  Mr.  Joel  Flagg',  of  Shrewsbury,  the  second  premium,  of  $3. 

Your  Committee  cannot  but  particularly  notice  a  very  delicate  speci- 
men of  Shirting,  wholly  of  linen,  offered  by  Mrs.  Gideon  Delano,  of  New- 
Braintree;  and  recommend  to  her  a  premium  of  $3. 

To  Mr.  John  Hunter,  of  New-Braintree,  for  the  best  Diaper,  5-4  wide, 
the  first  premium,  of  $8. 

To  Mrs.  John  Hunter,  they  likewise  award,  for  the  best  Diaper,  4-4 
wide,  a  premium  of  $5. 

In  awarding  the  single  premium  on  Woollen  Coverlets,  your  Commit- 
tee experienced  some  difficulty.  Three  Coverlets  of  uncommon  excel- 
lence were  offered,  differing  materially  in  the  manner  of  weaving,  but 
in  other  respects  very  nearly  equal.  After  considerable  deliberation,  we 
have  adjudged  to  Mr.  Perez  Cobb,  of  New-Braintree,  the  premium  of  $4. 
And  we  recommend  that  the  further  sum  of  four  dollars  be  equally  di- 
vided between  Mrs.  John  Clark,  of  Ward,  and  Mr.  Farwell,  of  Lan- 
caster. 

To  Miss  Betsey  C.  Glasier,  of  Gardner,  for  the  two  best  pairs  of  Gen- 
tlemen"*s  Half  Hose,  the  premium  of  $2. 

Of  the  articles  for  which  we  have  awarded  no  premium  we  cannot  but 
notice,  as  entitled  to  high  commendation,  the  Carpeting  presented  by 
Mrs.  Dolly  Jenckes,  of  Spencer — Mrs.  Mary  Robinson,  of  Worcester — 
Miss  Lydia  Houghton,  of  Petersham — and  Mrs.  Gideon  Delano,  of  New- 
Braintree — all  of  4-4  width  ;  by  Mr.  Ellis  Sprague,  of  Leicester,  and 
Mr.  John  Clark,  of  Ward,  of  3-4  width — an  elegant  wrought  Hearth- 
Rug,  by  Mrs.  Pliny  Merrick,  of  Worcester — three  others  less  tasteful  and 
much  less  valuable,  by  Miss  Mary  Eaton,  of  Brookfield,  and  Miss  Eliza 
Pope,  of  New-Braintree — two  braided  Rugs,  by  Mis?  Nancy  Sumner,  of 
Rutland.  The  Flannels  offered  by  Miss  Lucretia  Harrington,  of  Wor- 
cester, and  Miss  Lucy  Matthews,  of  NeW- Braintree — the  Blanketing,  by 
Mr.  John  Hunter,  of  New-Braintree — the  Diaper,  by  Miss  Sally  Blair,  of 
Worcester — Mrs.  Mary  Robinson,  of  Worcester — Miss  Sally  Chase,  of 
Sutton — Mrs.  Farwell,  of  Worcester — Mr.  Samuel  Brown,  of  Millbury, 
and  iMr.  Farwell,  of  Lancaster  ;  the  two  last  deficient  in  width.  The 
Hose,  presented  by  Miss  Polly  Leland,  of  Grafton,  and  Miss  Alice 
Sprague,  of  Leicester— as  also  a  pair  of  Ladies'  Hose,  offered  for  exhibi- 
tion by  Capt.  Southgate,  of  Leicester,  knit  by  a  lady  in  Windham  Coun- 
ty, (Conn.)  84  years  of  age. — Also,  a  Bed-Quilt,  by  Miss  Hannah  Blair, 
of  Worcester,  displaying  an  uncommon  degree  of  ingenuity,  industry 
and  taste — and  two  Counterpanes,  by  Miss  Polly  Leland,  of  Grafton^ 
and  Mrs.  Dolly  Jenckes,  of  Spencer. 

To  the  unsuccessful  competitors  we  can  say,  they  have  not  failed  be- 
cause their  articles  were  not  excellent,  but  because  those  presented  by 
others  were,  in  the  opinion  of  your  Committee,  entitled  to  the  preference. 
Let  no  one  be  discouraged  as  to  future  exertions.  What  has  been  done 
can  certainly  be  equalled  by  persevering  industry  ;  and  those  now  un- 
successful may  on  future  occasions  be  among  the  more  fortunate. 


29 

'The  Inspired  penman,  in  enumerating  the  excellencies  of  a  virtuous 
vroman,  says,  "  she  layeth  her  hands  to  the  spindle,  and  her  hands  hold 
the  distafi':  her  household  is  clothed  in  scarlet,  and  her  husband  is  kncwa 
in  the  gates,  when  he  sitteth  among  the  elders  of  the  city." 

To  those  Ladies  who  have  been  successful  competitors  for  premiums 
on  this  occasion,  we  have  only  to  add,  that  ''many  daughters  have  done 
Tirtuously,  but  they  have  excelled  them  all." 
Respectfully  submitted. 

BEZALEEL  TAFT,  Jr.  jjcr  order, 

October  13,  1824. 


Committee  on  all  Manufactured  Articles  other  than  of  Cotton, 
Wool,  and  Flax. 

Aaron  Tufts,  of  Dudley,  Chairman;  Jason  Mixter,  of  Hard- 
wick  ;  John  M.  Earle,  of  Worcester  ;  John  Spurr,  of  Charl- 
ton ;  Samuel  Billing,  and  Samuel  F.  Cutler,  of  Hardwick. 

THE  Committee  on  all  Manufactured  Article?  other  than  of  Cotton, 
Wool,  and  Flax,  have  attended  to  the  duties  assigned  them,  and  report 
as  follows : — 

For  the  best  Sole  Leather,  not  less  than  100  lbs.  they  recommend  a 
premium  of  $10,  to  Phinehas  Davis,  Esq.  of  Northborough.  Two  other 
lots  of  very  good  quality  were  offered. 

For  the  best  manufactured  Calf-Skins,  not  less  than  12  in  number,  the 
premium  of  $10,  to  W  illiam  Slocomb,  of  Northborough.  Your  Commit- 
tee were  somewhat  at  a  loss  in  deciding  between  these  Skins  and  two 
other  lots,  one  offered  by  Col.  J.  VV.  Watson,  of  Princeton,  and  the  other 
by  E.  H.  &  J.  Bowen,  of  Shrewsbury ;  but  on  a  careful  examination  we 
inclined  in  favour  of  the  former.  The  lot  presented  by  E.  H.  &  J.  Bow- 
en  was  manufactured  in  a  superior  manner,  and  would  have  been  en- 
titled to  the  premium  if  the  tanning  had  been  equal  to  the  currying. 

Of  Cider  we  had  but  one  specimen,  made  by  Rev.  Joseph  Goffe,  of 
Millbury,  which  is  entitled  to  the  premium  of  $6.  Although  but  one 
specimen  of  cider  was  this  year  offered,  your  Committee  are  satisfied  of 
the  utility  of  continuing  the  encouragement  of  the  Society  to  the  making 
of  an  improved  quality  of  this  cheap  and  wholesome  beverage.  It  is  be- 
lieved there  is  no  branch  of  the  farmer's  business  so  imperfectly  under- 
stood and  managed  as  that  of  making  cider,  and  none  in  which  a  little 
addition  of  pains  and  expense  would  yield  so  great  a  profit.  The  exam- 
ple of  Newark  is  one  which  ought  to  be  pressed  upon  the  consideration 
of  our  farmers.  While  ordinary  cider  sells  at  from  one  dollar  to  one  dol» 
lar  fifty  cents,  theirs  meets  with  a  ready  sale  at  from  five  to  six  dollars 
per  barrel,  while  the  extra  expense  is  not  probably  more  than  fifty  cents. 
By  following  the  same  course  which  they  have  pursued,  we  might  sooa 
rival  them  in  the  excellence  of  our  liquor  ;  and  the  capital  of  our  State 
■would  no  longer  need  to  be  dependent  on  New-Jersey  for  any  portion  of 
the  cider  which  they  use. 

Of  Butter  there  were  fifteen  parcels  offered,  most  of  which  was  very 
excellent,  and  your  Committee  experienced  some  difficulty  in  deciding 
on  their  relative  quality  ;  but  were  finally  unanimous  in  adjudging  the 
first  premium,  of  $7,  to  Stillman  Fitch,  of  Sterling,  and  the  second  pre- 
jaium,  of  $5,  to  Rufus  Hastings,  of  the  same  place.    Another  parcel  of- 


39 

<fired  by  Sylvester  iBrigham,  of  Southborougli,  claimed  our  particular  tC- 
tention,  and  for  a  time  divided  our  opinions  between  it  and  the  two  for* 
xner  parcels.  In  consideration  of  its  excellence  your  Committee  would 
have  recommended  a  discretionary  premium,  had  not  the  rules  of  the  So* 
^iety  forbidden  it  on  an  article  for  which  a  specific  premium  is  offered. 

Of  Cheese,  twenty  lots  were  offered,  all  of  which,  with  one  exception^ 
Were  from  the  town  of  New-Braintree,  and  were  such  as  to  fully  main- 
tain the  previously  acquired  reputation  of  that  town  for  good  dairying. 
After  a  careful  exaaiination,  your  Committee  finally  concluded  to  rec- 
ommend that  the  first  premium,  of  $10,  be  awarded  to  William  Tufts, 
and  the  second,  of  $5,  to  Capt.  Joseph  Green. 

In  addition  to  the  manufactures  for  which  premiums  were  offered,  a 
considerable  variety  of  articles  were  presented  for  exhibition,  among 
which  were  some  Hats  of  superior  workmanship  and  fine  stock,  manu- 
factured by  J.  P.  KettcU  &z  Co.  of  Worcester — a  double-bari  elled  Gun, 
on  a  new  construction,  v/hich  is  discharged  by  percussion,  made  by  E. 
C.  Fisher,  of  Lancaster — and  a  Saddle,  which  attracted  much  notice,  by 
Edward  M.  Burr,  of  Worcester. 

Pliny  Snow,  of  Leicester,  exhibited  some  fine  Card- Wire,  believed  to 
be  superior  to  the  average  quality  of  that  imported.  Considering  the 
importance  of  this  article  in  all  our  manufactures  of  Cotton  and  Wool, 
and  believing  that  the  time  has  arrived  when  it  mr^y  be  made  as  good 
and  as  cheap  as  it  can  be  imported,  and  that  by  the  manufacture  of  it 
at  home  a  large  sum  may  annually  be  saved  to  the  country,  we  have 
concluded  to  recommend  a  discretionary  premium  of  $3  for  this  speci- 
men, and  would  respectfully  suggest  to  the  Society  whether  it  may  not 
be  a  suitable  object  of  a  standing  premium. 

Two  Cast-Iron  Ploughs,  were  exhibited  by  Oliver  Witherby,  of  W^or- 
tester.  These  ploughs  are  fast  superseding  those  of  the  old  construction, 
and  are  believed  to  he  well  worthy  of  the  patronage  of  the  farmer. 

Not  the  least  interesting  part  of  the  exhibition  which  has  come  under 
our  immediate  notice,  is  the  variety  of  articles  presented  by  the  wives 
and  daughters  of  our  fellow-citizens,  which  aflnrd  favourable  specimens 
of  their  taste,  their  iudustr)',  and  their  skill,  which  cannot  be  particular- 
ly enumerated  at  this  time,  but  among  which  the  following  articles  at-? 
tracted  our  particular  attention,  viz. — 

A  number  of  Grass  and  Straw  Bonnets,  of  which  two  of  a  good  qual- 
ity, manufactured  from  the  poa  palustris^  or  fowl-meadow  grass,  in  imi- 
tation of  the  Leghorn,  are  thought  worthy  of  the  encouragement  of  the 
Society,  and  for  v/hich  we  recommend  a  discretionary  premium,  of  $3^ 
to  Celinda  Billings,  of  Lunenburg. 

A  beautiful  Straw  Bonnet,  of  the  Dunst'ibl*  braid,  was  exhibited  by 
Clarissa  Newton,  of  Westborough,  and  another  by  Capt.  Charles  Park- 
ma^n,  of  the  samn  place.  Seven  others,  nearly  equal  in  quality,  were 
exhibited  by  Mary  Brown,  of  Lunenburg.  Several  others,  which  shewed 
great  ingenuity,  were  also  exhibited,  some  of  which  wore  entitled  to  par- 
ticular commendation  ;  but  it  was  believed  by  your  Committee  that  the 
expense  of  the  manuflxcture  would  not  warrant  the  general  introduction 
of  it. 

Some  very  beautiful  Work-Baskets,  or  Indispensables,  manufactured 
from  straw,  were  exhibited  by  Eliza  Bryant  and  Mary  E.  Rockwood,  of 
Worcester. 

A  box  of  Wreaths  and  Artificial  Flowers,  rivalling  in  workmanship  and 
beauty  the  best  imported  ones,  were  offered  ty  Mrs.  D.  G.  Wheeler,  of 
Worcester,  and  her  children,  whose  taste  and  ingenuity  bave  heretofore 
Ijeen  noticed  by  the  Society, 


Si 

We  were  also  much  ^atliiecl  with  the  appearance  of  several  Card-v. 
Backs,  made  of  sea-shells,  which  were  superior  to  any  thing  of  the  kind 
"Which  has  before  fallen  under  our  notice.  As  they  were  not  regularly 
entered,  we  were  unable  to  ascertain  to  whom  the  Society  ig  indebted  for 
their  exhibition. 

In  conclusion,  your  Committee  would  observe,  that  although  they  may 
not,  in  all  cases,  have  done  exact  justice  to  the  relative  claims  of  indi- 
viduals, yet  they  would  assure  them  that  they  have  honestly  exercised 
their  best  skill  and  judgment  to  come  to  that  result ;  and  those  that  may 
feel  disappointed  should  recollect,  that  where  all  txctl  it  is  difficult  to 
determine  who  is  best. 

All  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

J.  M.  EARLE,  Chairman  pro  tevj-.. 


Committee  on  the  Ploughing  Match. 

Joseph  Thayer,  of  Uxbridge,  Chairman  ;  Rufus  Porter,  of 
Worcester  ;  Cyrus  Leland,  of  Grafton  ;  John  Whitney,  of 
Princeton  ;   Asa  Pond,  of  Petersham. 

THE  Committee  on  the  Ploughing  Match  have  the  honour  as  well  as 
great  satisfaction  to  inform  the  President,  Trustees,  and  all  the  members 
©f  this  Society,  that,  in  lieu  of  a  race  match^  we  have  this  day  had  a~ 
Ploughing  Match,  which  has  done  great  honour  to  all  the  competitors, 
and  much  credit  to  this  Institution.  Although  improvement  has  al- 
ways been  the  professed  object  of  our  Ploughing  Matches,  your  Com- 
aaittee  are  well  aware  that,  heretofore,  all  the  operations  of  the  com- 
petitors have  had  reference  principally  if  not  wholly  to  time.  This  has 
been  owing,  in  some  measure^  we  think,  to  the  competitors'  not  fully  and 
distinctly  understanding  the  way  and  manner  in  which  they  were  to  ob- 
tain the  highest  wages  for  their  labour.  Instead  of  commencing  and 
pursuing  their  work  in  a  farmer-like  manner,  and  attending  to  all  the 
parts  which  might  aid  and  assist  in  perfecting  the  whole  work,  the  end 
of  the  land  and  the  furrow  which  would  cover  the  most  ground  were  the 
objects  which  the  competitors  had  in  view  ;  as  if  two  or  three  seconds  of 
time  would  warrant  them  ^  premium.  But,  on  this  occasion,  your  Com- 
mittee are  happy  to  say  that,  in  their  opinion,  greal  advancement  has 
been  made  since  the  last  year  in  this  most  valuable  and  important  part 
•f  good  husbandry  ;  and  we  think  that  the  great  increase  of  competitors, 
in  addition  to  the  improvement  made,  is  conclusive  proof  of  the  necessity 
and  utility  of  attending  to  this  branch  of  our  Exhibitions. 

Seventeen  Ploughmen  with  their  teams  entered  the  field,  and,  being 
well  convinced  of  the  truth  of  the  sentiment  advanced  by  Cato,  when  he 
said  the  first  rule  in  husbandry  was  to  plough  well^  they  commenced 
their  work  and  ploughed  two  acres  and  one  eighth  of  an  acre,  in  8  hours 
and  25  minutes,  which  is  much  less  than  one  half  of  the  time  usually  oc- 
cupied by  those  farmers  who  are  regardless  of  improvement,  and  mispend 
their  time  in  the  use  of  worn-out  team?  and  worn-out  ploughs.  \nd 
whoever  will  take  the  trouble,  or  rather  the  pleasure,  of  minutely  exam- 
ing  the  ploughing  this  day,  will  generally  find  a  great  uniformity  in  the 
depth,  width  and  lay  of  the  furrows,  which  is  equally  beneficial  to  tha 
succeeding  crop  and  to  th^  ease  and  advantage  of  the  husbaadmaa  i» 
tilling  his  farm. 


32 

The  work  was  all  so  well  and  so  thoroughly  done,  that,  whUe  yoUf 
Committee  congratulate  the  Yeomanry  of  the  County  of  VVorcester  oa 
the  extraordinary  improvement  both  as  respects  the  work  and  manner  of 
doing  it,  they  found  the  duty  of  discrimination,  and  of  giving  preference, 
to  be  very  arduous  and  exceedingly  difficult. 

Seventeen  competitors,  being  called  to  order,  formed  a  circle  and  cast 
lots  for  their  sections,  the  ground  having  been  previously  divided  into- 
sections  of  an  eighth  of  an  acre  each. 

Lot  No.  1.     Jonas  Johnson,  of  Worcester — work  performed  in  41', 

Lot  No.  2.     Levi  Lincoln,  of  Worcester — work  performed  in  31'. 

Lot  No.  3.     Seth  Hastings,  of  Mendon — work  performed  in  28'. 

Lot  No.  4.     Silas  Dudley,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  34'  30". 

Lot  No.  5.     William  Eaton,  jr.  of  Worcester— work  performed  in  3^. 

Lot  No.  6.     Stephen  Marsh,  jr.  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  33'. 

Lot  No.  7.     Stephen  Marsh,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  29'  30". 

Lot  No.  8.     Royal  T.  Marble,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  30'. 

Lot  No.  9.     Lewis  Chapin,  of  Worcester — work  performed  in  29'. 

Lot  No.  10.     Luther  Whiting,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  31'  30"^ 

Lot  No.  11.     Samuel  Sibley,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  32'  45". 

Lot  No.  12.    Henry  Wheeler,  of  Worcester — work  performed  in  35'  30", 

Lot  No.  13.    Henry  Bullard,  of  Holden — work  performed  in  28'  36". 

Lot  No.  14.     Sumner  Cole,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  26'. 

Lot  No.  15.     Ward&  Ric,  of  Worcester — work  performed  in  26'  1&". 

Lot  No.  16.    John  Jacobs,  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  26'. 

Lot  No.  17.    Asa  Cummings,  jr.  of  Sutton — work  performed  in  25'  45"!. 

The  Committee  awarded  as  follows  : — 

First  premium  to  Asa  Cummings,  jr.  of  Sutton,  $10 — himself  Plough* 

man,  $5— Davis  Cummings,  Driver,  $3. 
Second  premium  to  Sumner  Cole,  of  Sutton,  $8 — Daniel  Woodbury, 

Ploughman,  $4 — John  Sherman,  Driver,  $2. 
Third  premium  to  Royal  T.  Marble,  of  Sutton,  $6— himself  Plough- 
man, $3— Russell  Marble,  Driver,  $1. 
Fourth  premium  to  Seth  Hastings,  of  Mendon,  $4 — Elias  Rawson, 

Ploughman,  $2. 
Your  Committee  have  to  remark,  that  the  ground  furnished  by  our 
President,  who  is  always  so  ready  and  so  willing  to  aid  and  assist  in  ren- 
dering this  anniversary  both  interesting  and  respectable,  was  remarkably 
fine,  and  well  calculated  to  give  a  fair  trial ;  and  for  this,  together  with 
the  excellence  of  the  work  of  his  team,  although  we  do  not  award  him  a 
premiutp,  he  has  ovir  best  wishes  that  his  land  may  return  him  a  ricfe 
liarvest" 

Per  order. 

JOSEPH  TltAYER. 


